


Good Morning

by LastCorsair



Category: RWBY
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-11
Updated: 2020-03-12
Packaged: 2021-03-01 00:15:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 21,695
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23106094
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LastCorsair/pseuds/LastCorsair
Summary: What started as a one-night stand for Ruby Rose and Winter Schnee blossoms into a deeper connection.
Relationships: Blake Belladonna/Sun Wukong, Jaune Arc/Pyrrha Nikos, Ruby Rose/Winter Schnee, Weiss Schnee/Yang Xiao Long
Comments: 11
Kudos: 101





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Another story of mine that was originally posted on FanFiction.net. Reposted here as part of my move.

Winter stirred, her arms pulling the body next to her closer. "I didn't take you for a morning person," an unfamiliar voice murmured. "But I'm game if you are."

An unfamiliar _woman's_ voice. "Shit," escaped from Winter's lips, doubly annoying her that she had lost control and said something she didn't mean to and it was profanity. Resigning herself to the inevitable, Winter opened her eyes and found a pair of silver eyes twinkling back at her.

"Morning," the other woman chirped at her.

"Good morning," Winter answered stiffly, lifting her head to look around and recognizing her hotel room. Which posed its own set of problems, but at least she knew where she was. "I'm sorry, but I'm embarrassed to admit that I don't remember your name."

"Swapping names didn't seem to be high on your priority list last night. Well, I'm Ruby, and you are...?" The redhead let the question trail off as she scooted a little away from Winter.

"Winter." She frowned. "My phone hasn't rung, has it?"

"Haven't heard it, no." Ruby sighed. "I take it this is the part where we make awkward goodbyes?"

"I'm afraid so. It's nothing personal, but-"

"-You're in the military, and despite what the regulations say, same-sex relationships are still a career-killer." Ruby sat up, keeping herself covered with one hand. "Not the first time I've heard that story. What is it with me and military women?"

"I take it you've had your heart broken a few times?" Winter reached out and took Ruby's free hand, giving it a gentle squeeze.

"Yeah." Ruby exhaled sharply, blowing her bangs out of her face. "Well, this was fun, but let's not make it any more awkward than it has to be. Let's just get dressed and, um, settle up the bill."

"I'll take care of it."

"I'm not a deadbeat!" Ruby snapped! "I can pay my share!"

Winter carefully counted to three, then sat up herself. "What I mean is, this is my hotel room. I'm staying here while on leave. Over there is my luggage."

"Oh." Ruby's face turned a most enchanting shade of red, almost as red as her namesake gem. "Sorry."

"No need to apologize." Winter thought carefully for a moment, then decided that maybe it was time for a gamble. "Actually, one of the things I need to do while on leave is find an apartment. My next duty station is here in Vale. I've got a week's leave; maybe you could show me around a little?"

Ruby opened her mouth, but before she could answer, opera came from beside the bed. Heedless of her undressed condition, Winter dived for the sound. Her mission successful, she sat up, grabbing one of the covers again. "Hello, Weiss, how are you this morning?"

"You're chipper, sister. I'm downstairs in the hotel restaurant, waiting for you."

Out of the corner of her eye, Winter could see Ruby's eyes get wide before she clapped her hands over her mouth, struggling not to make a sound. "I am running a little behind this morning; I still need to shower and get dressed."

Her sister's sigh was crystal clear. "Very well, but please be quick. I have important news and a tight schedule this morning."

Hanging up, Winter tossed the phone on the bed. "That was my sister. She's waiting for me downstairs and rather impatient. I may have to forgo a shower."

"You're Weiss's sister."

"I'm sorry?" Winter blinked. "Yes, my sister's name is Weiss; why?"

Ruby took a deep breath. "Because your sister is secretly dating _my_ sister, and I'm not supposed to know. But they've been 'roommates' for like seven years, and I don't think either one of them's had a date the whole time."

"I see," Winter said, nodding slowly as she thought about what Ruby had said. "Your evidence is slim, but it hangs together. Especially since my sister would have good reason to hide such a relationship, given our father's views. But why is my sister so insistent about meeting me today for breakfast? If she wanted to confess her relationship with your sister, she could do that at any time."

"Oh, I betcha she's got big news." Ruby grinned. "See..."

* * *

Winter strode through the restaurant doors, her demeanor managing to make the white pantsuit she wore look like full dress uniform. She held up a hand to forestall the server's attention, her pale blue eyes scanning the tables. Spotting Weiss and a blonde woman she'd never met before seated by the window, Winter marched over and sat down. "I only have one question, Weiss: Who asked who?"

Weiss and the blonde woman looked at each other in confusion. "I don't understand, Winter. Who asked who what?"

Her sister's glare pinned Weiss in place like a butterfly on display. "You asked me to meet you here because you and your girlfriend, Yang Xiao Long—forgive me, we haven't been introduced—are planning on getting married today. Given that today is the first day Vale's laws on same-sex marriage take effect. The only thing I'm not sure of is, who popped the question? Details, Weiss, details."

Weiss sputtered, but Yang spoke up before she could say a word. "Okay, you've got us. And we both decided to ask yesterday. My dad's holding us a spot in line, but, um, I don't want to leave him sitting there too long. People might get antsy. So how'd you know?"

"I told her, dummy." Ruby walked up behind her sister, taking a seat next to Winter. "I knew the two of you were together years ago. Figured it was your business. But when Winter told me you were insistent about seeing her this morning, the coincidence was too much."

"I didn't know you two knew each other," Weiss said, sipping her coffee while she recovered her composure.

Winter just glared at Weiss for a moment, then laughed. "I suppose I should be honest with you. Ruby and I met in a bar last night and, well..."

Yang's jaw dropped. "Wait, you picked up Weiss's big sister in a bar? Damn, Ruby."

"More like rescued her from the bottom-feeders that were circling," Ruby said, giving Winter a wink. "I at least gave her the option."

Winter opened her mouth, then stopped, thinking furiously. "Actually, Miss Rose, I was wondering if you were free for the day. I do need to go apartment hunting."

"Yeah, but after the thing at the courthouse for Weiss and Yang. I don't think either one of us wants to miss this."


	2. Chapter 2

"Ruby, this is insane. The very idea is ridiculous."

"You can still back out."

"I am still having trouble believing that someone who is apparently sane in every other respect routinely does this for fun."

"You said the same thing about the sailplane. And you loved that, once you relaxed a little."

"That was still an airplane if one without an engine. This, this is a _kite_ with delusions of grandeur."

Ruby pouted. "Now I'm not sure I want to take you hang-gliding."

Winter sighed. They stood on a bluff overlooking Vale. Both of them were rigged up in what Ruby called a 'tandem harness' that would let Ruby control their ridiculously fragile-looking hang glider while Winter just, well, came along for the ride. Perhaps that was part of Winter's problem, the idea of being so completely at Ruby's mercy. "How did I let you talk me into this?"

"You said that before your leave was over, you wanted to do something memorable, something that you'd never done before, something that people couldn't believe that 'Ice Queen' Winter Schnee would ever even think of doing. So I suggested this." Ruby turned her head and pulled down her sunglasses. "Seriously, you can still back out. People do all the time. But once we're in the air, the only way out is down."

Winter frowned and glanced over to where a friend of Ruby's was leaning up against the truck that had brought them here, apparently oblivious to the discussion they were having. "And you're sure this is safe? And that my sister has never done this?"

"Safe? No. About seven people a year die hang-gliding. But if things go wrong, we're wearing parachutes. Just pull the handle. But I'd rather not do that, because I'll never hear the end of it." Ruby laughed. "And as far as I know, your sister's never done this. She tried, once. We got all rigged up, were about to make our run to take off, and she had a panic attack. Hasn't tried it since."

That settled it. If nothing else, it would be bragging rights with her sister.

As they made their takeoff run toward the cliff, Winter could have sworn she heard her phone go off. Whatever it was, it could wait. She was on leave.

Once airborne, Winter was awestruck by the earth spread below them, nothing but the wind rushing by distracting her from the sight. "Incredible," she whispered, barely aware she'd spoken aloud.

"I take it this is a do-again?"

Winter closed her eyes at that, then immediately opened them again. She didn't want to miss a moment of this. "Ruby… we haven't talked about what happens after Monday, have we?"

The redhead laughed. "Winter, we're thousands of feet above the ground, riding a 'kite with delusions of grandeur' I think you called it, you are completely at my mercy, and now you want to talk about this, this, whatever this is we have? Talk about bad timing."

"No better time." After Weiss and Yang's marriage ceremony, Ruby and Winter had spent the week together, Ruby showing Winter around town and Winter trying to find a suitable apartment, with little luck. "Ruby, this week, I've grown to like having you around. I think I'm fonder of you than any other person in my life, with the exception of Weiss. I'd like us to stay together. The only catch is, I can't risk my superiors finding out about us."

"So I get to be your dirty little secret? Hard pass."

"No." Winter's voice was firm as her mind raced for a way to undo the damage her words had done. "I don't care who else knows about us, but we have to maintain a certain discretion regarding my workplace."

"Huh. Can I think about that one?"

"I'll give you until we reach the ground."

"Well then, I guess it's in my best interests for us to stay up as long as possible. Do you trust me? I can keep us up for hours."

"If I didn't trust you, I wouldn't have gotten on. But I'd like to be down by lunch. Maybe try that Mistrali restaurant we passed on the drive up?"

"Oh, I love that place. There's a field nearby where we can land, and Sun can meet us there. Hold on."

For hours, Ruby dove and whirled their little craft through the air, making Winter whoop with delight. She hadn't had this much fun in, in, well she frankly couldn't remember. But finally, Ruby brought them down as gently as a thistle in a field opposite the Mistrali restaurant. As they undid their harness, Winter cleared her throat. "You know, we're on the ground."

"Yep. Smile for the camera." Ruby snapped a picture of the two of them standing in front of the glider, then tapped out a quick message. She showed it to Winter, looking at her for permission before sending it to Yang and Weiss. _Just took my girlfriend for her first hang-glider flight._

Winter smiled. "Add 'She's hooked' and send it. Bets on who calls first?"

As Sun came into view behind the wheel of the truck, the thought that had been nagging Winter all week finally crept into the light. "Ruby, you have some expensive hobbies and a lot of free time. What do you 'do'?"

"I'm a flight instructor. Fixed wing, rotary, and sailplane. I work for a school but I own the sailplane I gave you a ride in."

"Remarkable for someone your age."

"Blame my dad. See, he won the lottery when I was little, but instead of being stupid with the money, he sank it into starting his own construction business. Now it's probably one of the largest in the city." Ruby laughed. "Heck, we've probably done work for your dad."

"Please don't mention my father."

Ruby winced; she should have remembered not to mention Winter's father. "Anyway, when I was fourteen, I got crazy about airplanes. Wanted to be a pilot. So I saved every Lien I could get my hands on and conned my dad into finding somebody that would take me up on a glider flight. It stuck."

"I see. Well, I'll admit I enjoyed myself today. I've been told I need to find something to do outside of work; hang gliding seems an enjoyable choice." Winter stretched, working out the kinks from being in the air all morning, then remembered the noise her phone had made and reached into her pocket for it. Unknown number, but they left a voicemail. "I don't suppose you could put me in touch with a certified instructor? Someone you would use if you had to learn all over again. And I suppose I will need my own gear."

"My lady, I _am_ a certified instructor," Ruby laughed as she and Sun started dismantling the glider.

The voicemail made Winter scowl. "Ruby, I know it's Friday and I'm supposed to be on leave until Monday, but I have to report in. I may even have to report to my new duty station early."

"Rats. Suppose we can get lunch before you have to go?"

* * *

"You asked to see me, General?"

"Yes, Lieutenant, please have a seat." Ironwood gestured at one of the chairs in front of the desk. "I'm surprised you didn't come in sooner. I had someone call you early this morning."

"I was… unable to answer my phone." Which was true, as far as it went.

He settled back in his chair. That almost sounded evasive, something he wasn't used to from her. "Well, I could have used you here earlier, but at least you're here now. I know I wasn't supposed to be officially taking this post until Monday, but that was before this morning. Want a cup of coffee? You'll be needing it."

"Yes, thank you. What happened this morning?" Winter took the cup from him, glancing around the office. None of Ironwood's usual decorations were in place. Instead, someone else's family and career looked back at her from the walls and shelves.

"This morning my predecessor's wife shot him over breakfast. It turns out he'd been having an affair." Ironwood barked out a laugh. "Couldn't she have waited a few days? And then there's this other thing, which I'm going to hand off to you. Or at least our part of it; most of this is CID business."

Winter took the folders he held out for her. "Did he survive? And what's this?"

"He's alive, but in critical condition. Turns out he had a taste for young soldiers on their first duty assignment." Ironwood shrugged. "Again, that's CID's problem. We just get to handle the fallout. And that is a conspiracy to steal government equipment. Both parties involved are, of course, claiming to be the other one's innocent pawn. But between you and me, I think they're both in it up to their necks. Plus a couple of things I've heard make me think they were sleeping together. Have I ever told you that one of the things I most appreciate about you is how reliable and drama-free you are?" He cleared his throat. "So, other than the interruption at the end, how was your leave?"

She paused for a moment before responding. Ironwood was probably expecting to hear that she'd spent the whole time reading or looking for an apartment. Winter decided to surprise him. "I got picked up in a bar and we ended up spending the week together. Oh, and my sister and her roommate got married. Apparently, they've been dating for years, going back to high school."

Ironwood blinked, startled. "And they kept it secret that long?"

"From everyone but my new sister-in-law's little sister, who learned by accident. I don't think Weiss has even told our father she's married."

Later, in an office that someone found for her (not her 'final' office, that would be right next to Ironwood's), Winter was reading through one of the files when something Ironwood had said hit her.

Reliable. Drama-free. That's how he saw her. Boring by any other name.

The realization hit her like a sledgehammer to the chest. How many weekends or leaves had she spent at home, reading or watching television? What had there been to her life other than college and then work? Winter had always been rather reserved, but when had that come to define her?

But there was something else now, wasn't there? Or rather, someone else. She pulled out her phone and started scrolling through the pictures of her and Ruby over the last week, stopping at one in particular. Ruby had taken her rollerblading and Winter had promptly landed on her ass. Ruby's laughter at Winter's indignation had shattered it completely, leaving the two of them laughing at each other, and the picture Weiss had taken captured the moment beautifully.

Regardless of how long she and Ruby were together, Winter didn't want to back to how she'd been before. Nor did she find that she wanted to.

Drama-free was she? Time to _be_ the drama.


	3. Chapter 3

"Hi there."

Winter didn't even bother glancing in the speaker's direction. "I'd like to be alone, thank you."

"Figured as much, given that the only two empty spots at the bar are on either side of you." Movement in Winter's peripheral vision showed that the intruder had settled in on Winter's right side. "And if you really want me gone, I'll be out of your hair after I have a beer and a word with the bartender. But I'll warn you, you're getting a lot of attention, and some of it's bad at taking no for an answer. You might have to break an arm. Not that you look like that'd be much of a problem for you, but it does tend to ruin an evening."

"I see." Winter watched in the mirror as the redhead seated next to her pulled a white envelope out of her jacket pocket and waved it at the blonde man behind the bar before laying it on the bar. "I do hope that's nothing illegal?"

"Nope. He just forgot his paycheck at his other job. This pays the bills, the other pays for fun." Behind the bar the bartender darted over, setting down a bottle of beer down and slipping the envelope into his back pocket.

"So the two of you work together?" Winter leaned over as she spoke; the bar was rather crowded and it was hard to hear the other woman.

"Too much fun in it to really call it work, but they pay me, so yeah, we work together," she answered, taking a pull on her beer.

"So, back to the other topic at hand," Winter said as she sipped her scotch, "You said I was getting some attention that I wouldn't appreciate. I take it you were about to offer an alternative?"

"The alternative is, we talk for a while, you finish your drink, and I finish mine, and then you and I go out the door arm in arm."

"And then?" Winter put enough challenge in her voice to let the other woman know she'd better like the answer.

"We wander down the street a bit, then you go your way and I go mine," the redhead answered, toasting Winter in the mirror with her beer.

"That's it? No contrived schemes to get us in bed together? No slipping me a little something so you or a confederate can have your way with me?" Winter regarded her drink suspiciously. Now that she knew that the redhead and the bartender knew each other, she trusted it a lot less. Not that it was all that good of a scotch to begin with.

"Not how I roll." There was a hint of anger in the other woman's voice, as if Winter had offended her. Which, in a way, she supposed she had. "I mean, you're really hot, plus you've got that whole classy and elegant thing going on, which works for me, but, well, that's a shitty thing to do to somebody."

"On that, we will agree." The two of them chatted amiably for a while, making small talk. Finally, Winter set her drink down, glancing at the redhead. "So how do we do this? From what you've said, it seems like you've done this sort of thing before, so I assume you have some sort of script to work off of."

"I lean over and whisper something in your ear while I slide my arm around your waist suggestively. Then you put an arm around me, and out we go. Simple, but it only has to fool them until we reach the door."

"Like this?" Winter whispered into the other woman's ear, sliding her arm around her waist."

"Mm-hmm. Usually the other way around, but I'm flexible." The redhead nodded, looking embarrassed "And now you have a date for the evening. Or at least the next ten minutes."

"Well, that depends on exactly how flexible you are." Winter couldn't be sure in the dim lighting, but she thought the other woman was blushing. Winter left a twenty on the bar and they wandered toward the door, leaning on each other. Just before they walked outside, a man with blue hair lifted his glass to them in salute.

Winter inhaled reflexively as they stepped into the cool evening air. Gods, she loved the smell of the world at night. No matter where in the world she was, it always seemed to smell ten times better at night. Then she looked up at the night sky, barely visible above the towering heights of downtown Vale. "I wish I could see the stars," she murmured, wishing she could see them despite the city lights; it seemed that if she could, the moment would be perfect. As soon as she thought it, the notion seemed ludicrous, but it stayed firmly in her mind despite all she could do to dislodge it.

"Well, if you don't mind a short drive, I know a great place to go stargazing on the edge of town." The redheaded woman was looking up at her, smiling despite the concerned look on her face. Winter just raised an eyebrow at her, making the other woman laugh. "Relax. I'll get my truck, you follow me in your car."

Twenty minutes later, they were on the edge of Vale, parked in front of a rather imposing gate. Winter watched as the redheaded woman got out of her truck and did something with the kiosk next to the gate. As the gate slid open, the woman jogged back and tucked something under the windshield wiper of Winter's rental car. "Gate pass," she explained. "Lets the staff know we paid to be here." Winter just nodded curtly; she'd seen the signs that proclaimed this to be "Salem Point, A Private Park That is Open to the Public" and "A Gift to the People of the City of Vale. No Anti-Tank Weapons or Explosives Allowed."

Another short drive brought them to the edge of a cliff overlooking the ocean. The still-nameless woman produced a large blanket from her truck and spread it out. "Come on, I won't' bite. Just lay down, lean back, and look up. The trees do a wonderful job of blocking out the city lights. My friend Blake uses this spot for stargazing."

Winter sighed and did as the woman said. It wasn't long before her eyes adjusted to the darkness and she could see the stars. "So clear and bright," she murmured. "It's hard to believe how close we are to Vale."

"Yeah," the other woman said, a dreamy tone in her voice.

"I do have one question if you know the answer."

"I can try."

"I saw the signs at the gate. Why are anti-tank weapons and explosives specifically prohibited? I mean, civilians shouldn't have them in any case, but still..."

The redheaded woman laughed, a musical sound that Winter found enchanting. "Now I know you're not from around here. Just about everybody in Vale knows that story. It's one of those urban legend things that turn out to be mostly true.

"See, it goes back to old lady Salem, who used to own this whole place. She was the last of her family, and the city wanted to build housing out here. So they pulled some eminent domain bullshit, tried to make it sound generous that they were letting her keep her house. Salem fought tooth and nail, for five years, but in the end, the city and the developers outright bought themselves a judge. Remember that; there's gonna be a quiz later." Winter snorted, making the woman laugh before she continued.

"The day came, and the construction company did a whole survey, then parked a bunch of earthmovers and stuff on Salem's property, set themselves up a nice little headquarters. She objected, but the city and the developers both told her that it wasn't hers anymore and they could do whatever they wanted. Salem decided that meant she could do whatever she wanted too.

"The next morning, the foreman was driving in early, when there's an explosion in the middle of the road, right in front of his truck. Then, boom! boom! Boom! There's a bunch of explosions all over their little headquarters. Finally, there's a fwoosh-fwoosh-fwoosh and up go all those earthmovers. All the construction company's stuff blows all to hell."

"Oh my. And I assume this Salem had something to do with it?"

Winter could barely make out the woman nodding in the darkness. "Yep. She blew it all up."

"How?"

"Mostly with a mortar."

"A mor-!" Winter sat upright, staring down at the shape of the other woman in the darkness. "How did she get one of those? And the ammunition? Where was she firing from?"

"I don't know how she got everything, but I do know where she was shooting from. There's a big old tower by her house, and it was just where she could see the road leading up here, including their encampment. She ranged them in a couple of days earlier, then decided to launch a sneak attack. Figured blowing a bunch of stuff up would get her another day in court, maybe at the federal level. Barricaded the front door and part of the stairs to her roof."

"How long did she get away with it?"

"Quite a while. See, she was smart. Livestreamed the whole thing and played herself as the victim. And her arsenal meant that the FBI had to get involved. She had the mortar, a recoilless rifle, assault rifles, explosives, lots of ammo, and lots of food and water. Salem was set up for a siege and made sure everybody knew it. After she knocked a couple of police helicopters out of the sky—by disabling their engines, they landed safely—she offered to surrender. On conditions.

"First, she would surrender only to the head of the FBI, himself, in person. Not over the phone or anything. And it had to be live-streamed, just like everything else. And she wanted new hearings about the annexation of her property, in a federal court.

"Salem got it all, too. Mostly because the FBI was annoyed at the Vale city police department at the time over something else, and was looking for a chance to make them look stupid. It took less than a week in front of an honest judge for Salem's lawyers to tear the whole thing apart. The mayor, half the city council, the president of the development company, a bunch of other people went to jail. Not anybody from the construction company, they were just doing what they were getting hired to do."

Winter couldn't help herself; she burst out laughing. How long had it been, she wondered, since she laughed that hard? "And the old woman got away scot-free, I assume?"

"Nope. She insisted on standing trial, but nobody wanted to press charges too badly on an old lady who was just trying to keep from getting screwed over. So they offered her a plea bargain: House arrest, in exchange for telling them where she got all her wonderful toys."

The two of them shared a laugh, then fell into a companionable silence, watching the stars above or the ocean below, depending on their mood. Eventually, it was Winter that spoke first. "Thank you, by the way. I think you kept me from doing something I would have regretted later."

"Oh?"

The white-haired woman sighed. "I… I don't know what I wanted when I went into that bar, but I think I know what would have happened, eventually. That unwanted attention would have worn me down, and one of them would have gotten through to me. And I would have hated myself in the morning."

"It's happened before?"

Winter looked away, not wanting her companion to see her face, even in the darkness. "Unfortunately, yes. I… I have no trouble attracting men, but I don't have the best of luck in keeping them, at least the ones worth keeping."

"That sounds lonely."

"It is," Winter said softly, her voice breaking. "Tell me, what made you sit next to me, back in the bar?"

"Partly I needed to give Sun his paycheck. And partly you seemed like you needed a friend."

"And partly because you found me attractive?"

Now it was the redheaded woman's turn to look away. "You remembered that, huh? Yeah, you're pretty much my cup of tea. But I know you're not interested, so there's that."

Winter sat up and started to reach for the other woman, then stopped, with her hand in midair. What was she doing? What was she thinking? "I… find myself less opposed to the idea than I expected, this time," she admitted, her hand dropping back down to the blanket.

"This time?" Now the other woman was looking back at her, head tilted to one side.

"I have been… propositioned before, by women. Some were very pushy, others were more polite, but each time I declined. But here, now, I feel… something that I think was missing before."

"If you're not sure about this, don't do it," was the answer, the redhead shaking her head.

In response, Winter raised lifted a hand, caressing the other woman's cheek, then leaned forward to kiss her hesitantly on the lips, gentle as a butterfly's kiss. "I want to," Winter said, the confession making her heart race. "But I… I haven't done this before, with another woman."

"Then it pleases me to be the first." The other woman's tone surprised Winter. She'd expected some sort of joy or anticipation, but instead, the redhead's voice sounded more concerned than anything. "We'll take it slow, just let me know if you don't like anything. And the safety word is 'banana.'"

* * *

"Lieutenant Schnee? Are you okay?"

The voice brought Winter out of her reverie with a jerk. "Yes, sorry, Lieutenant Winchester, I was just lost in a memory for a moment."

Grinning, Winchester wandered into her office. "Must have been a good memory, the look on your face."

 _If only he knew…_ "Is there something I can help you with, Lieutenant?" she asked sharply, setting the picture in her hands on a shelf.

"It's more what I can help you with, Schnee." Winchester spread his arms wide. "I hear you're not having any luck, finding an apartment. Staying at your sister's, I hear."

"That's correct," Winter admitted regretfully. She hated intruding on her sister and Yang's newlywed life, and the times Ruby had come over had been awkward, to say the least. "Do you have a solution to propose?"

"Yeah, I do. See, I've got a spare bedroom at my place. There's some workout equipment in there now, but I can put that into storage and just use the gym on base more. It's the least I can do to help you out. What do you say?" He stood there, the smile on his face showing what he assumed her answer to be.

 _And putting me conveniently in range of what he laughably calls his charm._ "No thank you, Lieutenant. Someone could get the wrong idea." Not to mention that would make continuing her relationship with Ruby difficult.

"Oh, don't be like that, Schnee." Winchester took a step closer, crowding her a little. "Tell you what, why don't we have lunch today and talk about it? I'm a nice guy, once you get to know me."

"Lieutenant Winchester." Winter's tone could have flayed flesh from bone. At a mile. "I have said no. And this is verging on harassment."

"More than verging, I'd say, but that's just me." A redhead wearing second lieutenant's bars stood in the doorway, her arms folded in front of her chest. "If you'd like to file a complaint, I'll gladly testify to what I overheard, Lieutenant Schnee."

"No need for that, I was just trying to help the lieutenant out."

"And she told you no, twice, rather firmly." The redheaded lieutenant feigned embarrassment "Oh, I'm sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. Lieutenant Nikos, CID. I need to ask Lieutenant Schnee a few questions."

After Winchester had beaten a hasty and undignified retreat, Winter turned toward Nikos with relief. "Thank you. He's been rather persistent the last few days, but that was excessive. I think it's past time I had a word with the general about him."

Nikos nodded. "I'll go with you after we take care of what brought me here today." She picked up one of the pictures on Winter's desk, looking at it. "Looks like everyone's really happy here. What's the special occasion?"

"Hmm? Oh, my sister's wedding. She married her girlfriend at the courthouse last Monday. They plan on doing it again, with a big ceremony, they just wanted to make things legal between them as fast as possible. Thanks to some help from my sister's new father-in-law, they managed to be the first ones."

"A happy day," Nikos said quietly. Then she smiled and chuckled softly as she saw the other picture on Winter's desk.

"Something amuses you?" Winter asked, fighting to keep any hint of panic out of her voice. Dammit, why did she have to put a copy of the picture Ruby had taken the day they went hang-gliding on her desk? She'd know it was a risk, but she hadn't been able to stop herself. Just one more week…

"Oh, a familiar face. My boyfriend took me hang-gliding on one of our first dates, and we've been doing it occasionally since. Looks like we use the same person you did. And here she is again, in your sister's wedding photo, standing next to you." Nikos gave Winter a questioning look.

"Yes, Ruby Rose. Her sister is my new sister-in-law."

"Right. I suppose that's how you met her. Now, onto the business at hand." Nikos closed Winter's office door, then sat in one of the chairs facing the desk, setting a voice recorder on the desk. After giving the time and date, and stating those present, she cleared her throat and looked straight at Winter. "Lieutenant Schnee, I'm just following up on a few loose ends. First, have you ever met Lieutenant Sustrai or Lieutenant Black?"

"Not to my knowledge. To me, they're just a name and a file." And a nuisance left over from General Ironwood's predecessor, but she wasn't going to say that.

"Right. Now, General Ironwood brought you here with him from his previous command, correct?"

"Correct."

"Did General Ironwood bring anyone else with him from that command?"

"Not to my knowledge."

"Do you have any idea why he brought you and no-one else?"

"General Ironwood has more than once said that he values my dedication and thoroughness." Dammit, what was Nikos digging for?

"Not because of any 'special relationship' you may have?"

Now _that_ was a loaded question. "No. Our relationship is purely professional."

"And yet, when he learned he was taking this command early, the second phone call he made was to you. Any idea why?"

Winter shrugged, forgetting that it wouldn't be recorded. "I assume that he was looking for someone he knew he could rely upon. Everyone else was an unknown quantity to him."

"I see. Speaking of that phone call, it took you several hours to respond. Why?"

"I was hang-gliding." She gestured at the picture on her desk. "There's a picture on my desk that was taken just after landing. When I checked my phone, I returned the call as quickly as possible."

Nikos nodded. "Let the record show that the picture Lieutenant Schnee refers to shows her and Ruby Rose, a local hang-gliding instructor that I'm acquainted with. Well, I think that's everything I need from you today, Lieutenant Schnee," she finished, clearing her throat and shutting off the recorder.

After Nikos had left, Winter exhaled sharply. She couldn't get rid of the picture now, it was on the record. "Dammit," she swore softly. Then her phone chimed an incoming message, and she smiled.

* * *

"So how was your morning? Mine was rather grueling. You had that schoolteacher for the sailplane ride, right?"

Ruby nodded, picking up a cardboard carton from the table and fishing something out. The two of them sat in a park near the base, cardboard cartons full of takeout Mistrali foot scattered across a picnic table under a ramada. "Yep. She got divorced and decided to start on her bucket list. Today was just a few hours, but I think I've got a repeat customer. She was in the office talking to Blake before I even had the plane stowed. She even wanted to take the stick, but I can't until she's done the classroom bit." She tossed the glazed chicken in her mouth and chewed dreamily.

"Good. Maybe I should start learning to fly one," Winter said, idly wondering how much a sailplane cost and whether it was worth giving her father the satisfaction of tapping into her trust fund. She was already researching her own hang-glider and gear.

Ruby's phone rang before she could answer. She answered it with a sigh, putting a finger to her lips to let Winter know it was business. "Mister Arc, it's good to hear from you again. Yes, I can arrange another double tandem flight for you and Miss Nikos. What? Oh, that's wonderful news. Yes, I can arrange a specific landing spot if you want. No, sorry, I can't handle special arrangements at the landing spot, but I might know someone who can. Yes, we can meet this afternoon to discuss it. Two o'clock? I think I can make that work. I'll see you there." She hung up with a sigh. "A regular customer. He's decided to propose to his girlfriend and wants to do it at the end of a glider flight. She's about ready to solo, but he's not even close."

"This girlfriend of his," Winter mused, "she wouldn't be a rather stunning redhead who's in the military? A second lieutenant?"

"Stunning redhead in the military, check, but I don't know her rank. Why?"

"I had a Lieutenant Nikos from CID in my office this morning. Right before you called, in fact." Winter grimaced. "She recognized you from our hang-gliding photo and my sister's wedding photo."

Ruby grimaced. "Ouch."

* * *

"So when's this date of yours showing up, Schnee?" Winchester gave her an irritating smirk. "If he's ditched you, let me know. I'll keep you company."

Winter sighed heavily. "They're just delayed, Winchester. They sent me a text message not ten minutes ago. Something about there being a problem at the gate."

Ironwood grunted, sipping his beer thoughtfully. "Remind me to read that report, Monday morning, Schnee. I don't think you've ever brought a date to any social function that I can recall, and I'm kind of annoyed that the occasion is being spoiled."

Winter nodded, her pale blue eyes scanning the crowd. In an attempt to get to know the people of his new command better, General Ironwood had arranged a barbecue with his senior staff. Or rather, he'd assigned the task to Winter. It wasn't the first time she'd had to plan a social function for him, and at least she'd gotten a basic grasp of how from helping her mother plan parties.

Now they all were in a park on the base, scattered around one of the ramadas. The officer's club had been convinced to provide an on-site cook to man the grill, freeing the general to socialize. Not that Ironwood was a poor cook, he was rather accomplished in the kitchen in fact, but today wasn't a day he needed to be cooking. Even Lieutenant Nikos was here, with a confused-looking blonde man practically grafted to her arm. Winter assume he was the 'Mister Arc' Ruby had mentioned and that Nikos had said yes.

Ah, here came Ruby's truck. Winter couldn't help but be amazed that Ruby drove such a big truck, but she needed it to tow her sailplane on its trailer, and sometimes launching it too. She schooled herself not to react as Ruby stepped out. Perfect. Ruby was wearing a scarlet dress that hugged her curves wonderfully, although it clashed with the rather utilitarian nature of her transport. Hell, Winter had even convinced Ruby to wear pumps today instead of her normal boots or tennis shoes.

"Can I help you, little lady?" Winchester said, putting himself in Ruby's path. "That's a big truck you're driving."

"Nope, got it, I just need to find-Winter!" Ruby crowed, dodging around Winchester and latching onto Winter. "Sorry I'm late. There was a holdup at the gate, the security dog went nuts over the car in front of me, and it took _forever_ for them to clear me."

"That's alright, Ruby, it's not your fault," Winter said, giving Ruby a quick kiss. "Oh, forgive me, General Ironwood, I suppose I should introduce the two of you. Ruby, this is General James Ironwood, my superior. General, this is Miss Ruby Rose.

"My girlfriend."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaand drama-bomb dropped! Catch you next time!
> 
> Also, is there a ship name for Ruby & Winter? I think it's 'Antique Roses', but I'm not sure.


	4. Chapter 4

" _General, this is Miss Ruby Rose. My girlfriend."_

"I'm going to kill Qrow for this."

Winter blinked, surprised at Ironwood's reaction. "Please don't, he's the only uncle I've got," Ruby muttered, sounding confused. Even Winchester took a step back. A rabbit-eared girl that Winter vaguely recognized let out a squeak of laughter, then put both hands over her face, trying to stifle her reaction.

"I'm going to kill Qrow," Ironwood repeated, taking a long swing of the beer in his hand. "Although I've got to give it to him, this prank's one of his better ones. And he's not even in Vale, as far as I know. He even got you to play along, Schnee."

"This isn't a joke, sir," Winter added, taking Ruby's hand in hers with a confused smile. "Ruby is, well, my girlfriend." Her smile shifted to a frown. "But who's this 'Qrow?' You both seem to know who he is; care to fill me in?"

"Qrow is Colonel Qrow Branwen, retired. A least officially. He and I served together." Ironwood's eyes flickered toward Ruby. "Last week he called me and said his niece had been invited to a party on the base, but she was banned and he was damned if he could find out why. Asked if I could do something about it. Base security said that it was an accidental trespassing charge from years ago and that all it would take was JAG and CID signing off. So I had it expedited and called Qrow back. I'm sorry, Miss Rose, Lieutenant Schnee."

Ruby glanced sheepishly at Winter, not sure what she should say. Winter raised an eyebrow at her before shaking her head at Ironwood. "I don't think any real harm has been done, sir, although I'm curious about this trespassing charge. Have you been hiding a criminal past from me, Ruby?"

"Why, you got a thing for bad girls?" Ruby laughed uncertainly, scratching the back of her neck. "Well, there's maps that show restricted airspace, things like airports, military bases, that kind of thing. When I was fifteen, the base expanded, so I went and got a new map before I went hang-gliding one weekend. Except that the guys that made the map messed up and I wandered over the new section of the base. I got chased down by a helicopter and arrested. They let me off with some community service, mostly because the map was wrong, and I was banned from the base. I thought it was supposed only to be for a year or something like that, but when I went to put in for a pass so I could come, it was still in effect. They said I could file to have the ban revoked, but that it could take months to sort out. So I called Uncle Qrow. Sorry, Winter. And, um General Ironwood. Sir," she added, glancing at Ironwood.

The general shook his head. "If anyone's in the wrong, it's me. All you did was ask advice from a relative, who called in a marker that's almost as old as you are." He smiled at the two of them. "I thought there was something was different about you, Schnee, since you came back from leave."

"Sir, I hope I haven't acted inappropriately-"

"You're fine, Schnee. Although I'd like to borrow Ruby for a few minutes, ask how her uncle's adjusting to his retirement. I doubt he's staying out of trouble. And what about the rest of your family? Don't you have a sister?"

"Yep, her name's Yang and she just got married," Ruby answered with a grin. Oh boy, with any luck she might get some good stories to embarrass her Uncle Qrow with.

"To _my_ sister," Winter said, shaking her head.

"Your dads must both be proud, having nothing but dykes for kids," someone growled just a little too loudly.

"Lieutenant Winchester." Irownwood's voice was harsh. "That comment was highly inappropriate and offensive. We will discuss it later, but for now, I think you'd better leave. Immediately." Winchester paled, started to salute, realized nobody was in uniform, and turned to leave.

"It's also inaccurate. When I last spoke with my younger brother, he was telling me about a very nice girl he met at college," Winter said, making Ruby laugh.

"Isn't he the one Weiss calls 'Shitley?'" Ruby tossed over her shoulder as she and Ironwood stepped aside.

"You lied to me."

Winter turned to find Nikos frowning at her, one eyebrow raised. "No, I didn't. You made an assumption and I chose not to correct you."

That made the redheaded woman nod. "Fair enough. So, how long have you known Ruby?"

"Three weeks. We met in the middle of my leave."

"And you're already risking your career over her." Winter opened her mouth to retort, but Nikos just shook her head. "Despite what the regs say, there's still a lot of people around with the mentality that a woman in uniform should either be a cloistered nun or looking for a husband in uniform. Hell, I'm running the same risk myself," she added, glancing at the blonde man standing a discrete distance away.

Winter nodded. "I take it that's Jaune?"

"You know him?" Nikos asked, her voice taking on a suspicious tone.

"Not quite. I was with Ruby when he called her." Spotting the ring on Nikos' left hand, Winter decided to take a chance. "I take it his gamble paid off?"

Nikos laughed, blushing and giving Jaune a shy smile before waving him over. "The goof was down on one knee before I was done unstrapping my harness. Ruby probably has the picture; she was the one flying with me that day. Jaune, this is Lieutenant Winter Schnee, Ruby's girlfriend."

"So I heard, Pyrrha. Nice to meet you, Winter," Jaune said, glancing at Pyrrha. "I guess I can call you by your first name, since I'm a civilian, right? Anyway, um, you and Ruby look great together. Has she had you up in the air yet? She's great to fly with."

Winter nodded, her mind going back to the time they'd spent together when she was on leave. "Yes, she has. In a gilder and..." she stopped, a warmth rising in her cheeks. Good grief, was she _blushing?_ This was embarrassing. Winter took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. "We were hang-gliding when I decided that I wanted to keep things going after my leave was over."

Pyrrha and Jaune exchanged a look, then Pyrrha sighed. "Winter, we've known Ruby for over a year and we've gotten to be pretty good friends with her, at least as much as we can with us being customers of hers. And you seem like a decent person, so I'm going to tell you something. Ruby's heart has wings. Try to cage her, and she'll fly away. Just, just remember that, okay?"

"I know," Winter said softly with a smile. _And she's shown me that mine does too,_ _if I dare_ _._

The thought surprised her. How was it that Ruby, who she barely knew, had come to mean so much to Winter so quickly? Was it just that Winter had been so lonely that she'd latched onto the first person that seemed to genuinely care about her? No, that wasn't it. It was something else. Ruby was far from immune to the woes of life, but she bore them lightly. "Life's rough, but you just have to keep moving forward," Ruby had said once. A thought crossed her mind, something she needed to ask Ruby later.

A chiming at from her pocket interrupted her train of thought. She regarded the message from her sister with puzzlement. _War council. Ren & Nora's at 6._ Was it some sort of code her sister had forgotten that Winter didn't understand? Then she saw Ruby grimacing at her phone. Ah, that was it. Weiss had sent the message to Winter instead of Ruby by mistake. But what did it mean? Ruby tapped out a quick message and then headed over to Winter. "Looks like your sister's called a war council. Want to come?'

"I don't understand," Winter answered, her eyes flicking to Pyrrha who was not quite paying attention.

Ruby sighed. "It's a code phrase. Means one of our friends is in a jam, or has messed up and is getting the gang together us to deal with it. Weiss probably forgot you weren't on the war council and sent it to you by accident." Ruby's phone binged again and she stared at it in surprise. "Um, she says she sent it to you on purpose. Oh boy."

* * *

Luckily the time given for everyone to meet gave them plenty of time to enjoy the barbecue despite the looming dread over why Weiss had called the war council. Ren & Nora's turned out to be the Mistrali place had been getting their food from. Winter took an appreciative sniff as they stepped through the door. "Hey, Nora," Ruby yelled. "Everything a go?"

"Yep!" the orange-haired woman said as she stuck her head out the door. "Private party sign is out, and the food's almost ready. Who's the babe? I haven't seen her before. Tall, classy, white hair,-oh! I know, she's some relative of Weiss'. The unknown number on the recipient's list! She's here because Weiss called the council, isn't she?"

Winter coughed, interrupting the woman's ramblings. "I'm Winter, Weiss' older sister, and yes, I'm here because she requested my presence tonight. I don't suppose you have any idea what's going on?"

"Nope, not a clue. Just that your sister's the one getting the bill!"

Ruby chuckled as she led Winter over to a group of tables that had been pushed together. "War council rules. If you call it, you get the tab for the meeting. Makes sure whoever calls it is serious."

Next to arrive were Sun and a Faunus woman with feline ears sticking up out of her jet-black hair. "You must be Winter," the woman said, a polite smile on her face. "Sun's been talking about you a lot. He says you're good people, which means a lot coming from him."

"I will take that as a high compliment," Winter said, returning the woman's smile.

"You should. Oh, Winter's also Weiss' sister, and my girlfriend," Ruby said, leaning over to give Winter a peck on the cheek. For some reason this made Blake wince. Maybe she didn't approve of public displays of affection?

Finally, Yang came through the door, Weiss trailing along behind her like a prisoner approaching the gallows. At a glare from Yang, Weiss remained standing while Ren and Nora filled the table with plates of food. "Food's Mistrali-style" Ruby murmured. "Serve yourself from the common plates. Oh, and since Weiss called it, she's not allowed to sit or eat until she's explained things. She must have pissed Yang off or something."

"Yes, I have made your sister angry, but that's not everything." Weiss reached out and picked up a spoon from the table, tapping a water glass to make it ring. "I, Weiss Schnee, hereby call this council of war to order, having accidentally committed offense against Ruby Rose, a sitting member of this council, and Winter Schnee, both my sister and Ruby's girlfriend."

Ruby whistled. "What'd you do?" she asked, her face a mask of confusion.

Weiss sighed heavily and glanced at Yang, who made 'get on with it' motion. "Yang and I were having lunch with your parents today. It was a peacemaking gesture. Raven is still furious at both of us for keeping our relationship a secret for so long. And at Taiyang for aiding and abetting our wedding, of course."

Winter nodded. Ruby had explained that she and Yang had the same father, but different mothers. Both of their mothers and their mutual father lived together, in some arrangement Winter was still unclear about. Weiss continued. "While we were eating, I accidentally let it slip that Ruby was seeing someone."

 _That_ made everyone at the table groan. "Weiss, you dummy," Ruby sighed, banging her head down on the table.

"I don't understand," Winter said, looking around at everyone.

Ren cleared his throat. "Ruby's first relationship after high school ended badly."

"That's putting it mildly," Weiss said, reaching for her chair only to have Yang smack her hand.

"I almost went to jail," Ruby said grumpily as she lifted her head from the table and rested her chin on her hand instead. "Ever since, Raven's been suspicious about anybody I dated. So I, um, kinda stopped telling my parents about my love life."

"And that," Yang said, relenting and pushing a chair out for Weiss with a foot, "is why Weiss is in trouble, and I made her call the war council. Because Raven went full-bore Valish inquisition in the middle of lunch. Summer was Not Happy."

"I see. So the problem is, Raven was already angry at Weiss and Yang, and Taiyang. And now she's angry at Weiss, Yang, and Ruby for keeping Ruby's relationship with me a secret." Winter stood. "Ruby, may I speak with you outside for a moment?"

Outside, raindrops were starting to spatter on the asphalt. Ruby sighed. "Winter, I know what you're thinking. And I, I'm not sure I'm ready to introduce you to them, okay? Especially Raven."

"Ruby." Winter's voice was firm, if less harsh than it usually was. "First, a question. Raven is Yang's mother, not yours, correct? Do you think there's a reasonable chance she will approve of me?"

"I think so? Maybe?" Ruby shrugged. "I mean, you're kinda like Weiss, and she likes Weiss, but she's known Weiss for, like, ever. The first time I can remember Weiss being around is my twelfth birthday, so that ought to tell you."

"I see. That brings me back to another thing." Winter looked Ruby dead in the eye. "We've been dating for about three weeks, yes? Then..." she paused, not sure how to phrase this. "Ruby, every night we've spent together has been either at my hotel room, or what is now the spare bedroom at Weiss and Yang's apartment. I still don't know where you live. Or when your birthday is."

"Halloween."

Winter blinked. "Say again?"

"My birthday. It's Halloween." The silver-eyed woman looked away, not wanting to face Winter. "And, well, I just… Listen, you mentioned having trouble keeping people in your life. Well, I haven't done too well either. With one horrible exception that I don't want to talk about right now, this is is the longest relationship I've ever had. And I don't want to fuck it up."

Gently, Winter reached out and turned Ruby' s face toward her, bending down to kiss Ruby. "I'm uncertain of a great many things myself. For example, I don't have a good estimate of how soon you should introduce a romantic partner to your family. Except that Raven is furious, and I hope you're not offended when I say that I intend to put off introducing you to my father as long as I can. Possibly after he's dead."

Ruby snorted. "From what Weiss has said, I don't blame you. Okay, if you're sure, I'll call my mom, that's Summer, and see when we can, I don't know, have dinner with them or something." She took a deep breath, steadying herself. "And, and if you want, um, you can stay over at my place tonight."

"Thank you. My sister hasn't said anything, but I am getting the impression that I am cramping their style."

Ruby pulled out her phone as the pair returned to the table. Gesturing for everyone to be quiet, she called her mother. "Hey, mom, how mad is Raven?"

"Tai and I banished her to the patio. I don't think she's stopped smoking since Weiss and Yang left." Summer's voice sounded amused. "Some of her paranoid ramblings are kind of funny. Want to hear some."

"Nah, I'm good. Pretty sure I'll get an earful next time I'm there." Ruby glanced at Winter, who just nodded. "Okay, yeah, I'm seeing someone, but I think Raven might like her, once she gets over being pissed. She, um she says she's willing to meet you guys."

"This fast? I would have thought you'd dodge this as long as possible."

"Her idea. She's kind of decisive like that."

"Hopefully in a good way." Ruby could hear her mother walking around whatever room she was in. "Okay, Tai is outside talking to Raven. Looks like she's calming down a little. When can we expect you? Think you can swing dinner tomorrow?"

Ruby covered her phone, and mouthed the words, _Dinner tomorrow?_ at Winter, who nodded. "Yeah, she says she can do that."

"Right, I'll let Raven know. And I'll make sure to tell her that you called me and that your mystery woman volunteered."

Ruby set her phone down with a sigh. "Okay, drama-bomb on safe for now. Time to eat up, everyone."

* * *

For once, Winter was glad she'd bought a small SUV instead of a high-end sports car. Ruby didn't live on the backside of the moon, but the last twenty minutes had been on dirt roads. She stepped from the car, looking at the rambling ranch-style house.

Ruby stood next to her truck with the door open, staring at the house. Winter rested a hand on her shoulder. "If you want, I can stay at my sister's."

"Nah, bad idea. You didn't see Yang's eyes light up when she heard you were staying with me tonight. Listen, Winter," Ruby looked up, her eyes catching the moonlight, "I got burned, a couple of times, by relationships. So I, um, I got kinda skittish, kept things simple for a couple of years. But, um, you remember that night at Salem's Point, when you said you were feeling something that was missing, before? I think I feel that same kind of vibe with you. You make me feel safe. Which all sounds kinda jangly and stupid and I'm sorry."

"Don't be." Winter paused for a moment, ordering her own thoughts. "I have often been called cold, distant, emotionally unavailable, though I would prefer the word 'reserved.' Far too many have laid siege to me as if I were a prize to be won by force. But you, you didn't even try to force the castle gate. You just set up a picnic outside them, and waited to see if I wanted to join you."

Ruby laughed, that same laughter Winter had heard from her that first morning. "I didn't know you had that kind of poetry in you, Winter."

"I used to spend a large portion of my personal time reading."

"Used to?"

"Used to."

Ruby jerked her head toward the door. "Want to come in?"

"If I wouldn't be intruding."

They wandered toward the door, and Ruby stopped, her hand inches from the doorknob. "I, uh, I'm sorry about the mess. I need to pick up more, I guess."

"It'll be fine."

In fact, Winter had seen soldiers' barracks rooms that were messier than Ruby's home. It was far from new; instead, everything was well-worn and lived-in. Video game controllers and magazines occupied the coffee table, and while there were dirty dishes in the kitchen, at least they were all in the sink or next to it. One wall was covered in photos and trophies from various flying competitions, and Winter stopped to run her hand along one frame that held pride of place. From the date, Ruby must have been barely fifteen, and she'd taken third place.

Ruby tossed her jacket on the couch and stood in the middle of the living room, arms down at her sides, hands clenching into fists and opening repeatedly. Gently Winter stepped behind her, slowly sliding her arms around Ruby's waist, resting her head in the crook of Ruby's neck. "Are you okay?" she murmured softly.

"Yeah, just… I haven't had any visitors, in a while. Or a roommate, not since Sun moved out. Heck, I don't even have a cat."

"Should I stay or go?"

"Stay," Ruby said, and while there was a tincture of uncertainty in her voice, the tone was clear and strong. She leaned back into Winter, and the tension practically evaporated off her. Suddenly Ruby had turned around in Winter's arms and was pulling her down for a passionate kiss. When they pulled apart, Ruby stepped back, pulling Winter with her. "This way."


	5. Chapter 5

Ruby collapsed onto the bed, gasping. "Are you sure I'm your first girlfriend?"

"I think I would have noticed," Winter said, brushing her hair out of her face.

"Then where did you learn _that?"_

Winter laughed and laid down next to her, snuggling close on the narrow bed. "I read it in a book."

Her girlfriend burst out laughing. "You're joking."

"Absolutely not." Winter laughed, delighted to have surprised Ruby. "I found it on their coffee table a few days ago."

That put Ruby into hysterics. "Oh my god! I'll bet it was Weiss'."

"Quite probably. I have never seen my sister more embarrassed than when she caught me reading it." Winter smiled at the memory. She had been watching television when the book caught her eye. When Weiss had caught her reading it, all she had done was stand there mortified while Winter made note of the book's title and author and set it back down without a word. She hadn't really thought someone could die of embarrassment before that. "One thing, Ruby."

"Hm?"

"You're going to need a bigger bed. If, if I'm going to be staying over again."

"Yeah." Ruby sighed. The twin bed she had was roomy enough when it was just her, but it was kinda cramped for two. Lots of things were changing as she made room for Winter in her life. A thought crossed Ruby's mind, and she frowned, not liking where that train of thought went.

"Something wrong?"

"Kinda. Um, don't take this the wrong way, but… I was thinking about asking you to move in, but… I, I realized I'm not ready for that, yet." Ruby held her breath, waiting for Winter's reaction.

Which was kinda underwhelming. "The porcupine's dilemma," Winter murmured.

Ruby propped herself halfway up on an elbow. "Huh?'

"A philosophical conundrum. We seek to come closer together, but are having difficulty doing so, due to our respective problems." Winter leaned over and gave Ruby a kiss on the cheek. "I am not offended by you not being ready to have me here full-time. If you're not ready, then you're not ready, and I'll try to respect that."

"That's a relief."

Winter reached out and turned Ruby's head so she could stare straight into those captivating silver orbs. "Ruby, you've known Weiss for a long time, haven't you? Has she ever discussed our home life? Our father?"

"Not really." Ruby frowned. "But… after I figured out she and Yang were together, I, um, I did some digging about your family, and him. Some of the watchdog sites, they have him pegged as half a step short of the Antichrist." Ruby blushed and looked away; it felt wrong somehow, admitting to Winter that she'd looked up her father; like she'd sold Winter's nudes or something.

"That is… not entirely accurate, but sufficient for the purposes of discussion. My father is cold, distant, and obsessed with getting his way by any means necessary. As his oldest child, I was one more marketable commodity, a tool in his rise to even greater power. It put a great deal of pressure on me, and wasn't without… consequences. So when I was old enough, I ran off to military school."

"You what?!" Ruby sat straight up, gaping at Winter. "How'd you do that? Don't you need, I don't know, enrollment forms, tuition, that kind of stuff?"

"At the time, my mother's drinking wasn't that bad; I enlisted her as my co-conspirator. I was at the school for a month and a half before Father bothered to find out where I was. And when he showed up to drag me home, I hit him."

"No way!" Ruby laughed. "You did not!"

Winter chuckled with amusement at Ruby's reaction. "I even gave him a bloody nose. It was the first time I'd ever struck someone in anger. He just stood there, blood dripping down into his mustache for a moment, then reached up to wipe it away with a silk handkerchief, which he tossed in the trash like it was nothing. 'Keep her then, if you think you can make something of the little barbarian.' And then he left. I didn't see him again until summer break." A smirk crept across Winter's face. "I still have the handkerchief; I snatched it right out of the trash as soon as he was gone."

"Good." Ruby's face was grim. "I mean, I haven't actually met him, but everything I've read about your dad doesn't make me think I'd like him much."

"I doubt he would approve of you either." A stray thought crossed Winter's mind, and she reached up to touch Ruby's hair, watching it in the morning light.

"I know, I've got terrible bed head. Always do."

"That's not it. Weiss and I were arguing a few days ago about your natural hair color. She says your hair is black, with red highlights. But I'd swear your hair is red naturally. And I think I've gotten a closer look than she has lately," Winter finished, running her hand down Ruby's arm.

Ruby just smiled and shook her head. "You're both kinda right. My hair's black, but the fade to red at the tips is natural, not dyed or something. It's some sort of oddball genetic mutation, less than a hundred people on Remnant or something like that. Same with my eyes, they're super-rare too. But my mom has them so I'm pretty sure where those come from. So I'm a double freak."

"I would rather say you're a treasure beyond price." Winter cleared her throat. "So, I think we talk about dinner with your parents tonight. We need an angle, an 'in' for Raven. Do you have any suggestions?"

Ruby's face fell, and she turned away, head down, legs hanging off the side of the bed. "Do we, do we have to talk about that?"

Closing her eyes and counting to ten, Winter scooted over to lean against Ruby. "Having second thoughts?"

With a jerky nod, Ruby said, "Yeah. The last girlfriend I took home was..."

"The one that broke your heart," Winter said softly, and Ruby nodded again. "Ruby. Am I her?" Ruby shook her head. "Have I treated you like she did?" Another head shake. "Then listen to me: You're afraid of what your parents will think of me. I am fairly certain that everyone who has brought a romantic partner home to meet their family has felt that way. In your case, it's very justified, given past events. It will be okay."

"I just… I'm afraid."

"Your parents are not monsters." Now Winter shook her head, trying to clear the image that popped into her mind. "I grew up with one; believe me, I know."

"That's not it." Ruby drew a deep, ragged breath. "This, this whatever this is between us, I'm afraid of fucking it up."

Winter laughed. "Ruby, how long have we known each other?"

"Three weeks."

"And we've been 'official', to borrow a word, for two of those?" The white-haired woman paused before forging on. "Ruby, this is the longest relationship I've ever had, too."

"What?" Shock broke Ruby out of her funk. "No way, you're, you're so classy and, and gorgeous, how the fuck is this the longest you've ever been with someone?"

"I have," Winter cleared her throat, "trouble opening up to people. Especially in an intimate fashion. And someone whose name I am determined to learn if only I can curse it properly has wounded you down to the soul."

"There you go with poetry again," Ruby murmured, a hint of pink appearing on her cheeks.

"Hush. What I mean to say is, you aren't alone anymore, and neither am I. Now," Winter's voice took on a calculating tone, "how do I make sure your parents see me as who I am, instead of this nameless harridan revisited? How did she dress, act when you introduced her to them?"

"Really sexy, and, um, kinda slutty," Ruby admitted, blushing furiously. "And she kinda flaunted her money, too."

"I don't think that's quite my style, do you?" They shared a laugh. "So if I dressed the way I did when we first met, how do you think they'll react?"

Ruby's brow furrowed in concentration. "Raven's going to be suspicious, think you're a fraud, but she's going to be suspicious anyway. Mentioning you're Weiss' sister might dispel that, but she's still kinda mistrustful of Weiss since she and Yang hid they were together so long. Being in the military's a bonus. Raven wanted to join, but she's got some congenital something or other so she couldn't. Really pisses her off since she and Qrow are twins. Oh, try not to mention him unless she brings him up. They don't get along well most of the time."

"And Summer?" Winter asked, prompting Ruby.

"Easy sell. You're stable, financially and personally. She doesn't like your dad, but that's because she works for one of those civil rights groups that are always suing him. Getting as far away from him as possible is your selling point with her. The story about you running off to military school should make things a slam dunk."

"I'll see if I can slip it in. What about your father?"

Ruby shrugged. "Not sure how to handle him. He's going to be watching how you treat me. So, um, just be yourself, I guess?"

"That sounds like my best strategy overall. Now, what are you going to wear? I'm not suggesting matching outfits or anything, but clothing is a weapon and a message. Tonight is a battlefield, if not one so perilous as the one I grew up in."

Ruby shivered. "Yeah, Weiss has said a few things. Okay, I'm a little short on fancy dress, but I think I can find something. Oh!" She jumped out of bed, rummaging in her closet. "Perfect," she said, pulling out a black sleeveless dress and holding it up to herself. "Solid hit with Raven, she hates that I always wear pants. And I've got a red jacket that matches it nicely."

Winter just gave the dress a dubious look. "Why is everything you wear red, black, or both?"

"My favorite colors, silly. Oh! Here's a blast from the past." Ruby pulled out another dress, this one with a high neck, full-length sleeves, and red trim on the skirt and sleeves. "Add black stockings and combat boots, and you have me, circa senior year of high school. Probably don't fit into it anymore, though. Wonder why I still have it?"

"Good memories, I assume." Now Winter stood, looking at first dress Ruby had produced. "I think you're right, this should do just fine. And I have an outfit that should match it nicely."

* * *

Ruby pulled up in front of her parents' place, killing the engine with a sigh. "Yea though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no mother," she said with a grin, "for my gorgeous girlfriend is dressed to kill."

Winter stepped out of her car, standing for a minute to look at the house Ruby had grown up in. On the outside, it looked like a large, rustic cabin, but Ruby had said it was very nice inside. "Ready?" she asked Ruby."

"Ready," Ruby replied, looking Winter up and down. Winter's blue-gray jacket and slacks set her eyes off nicely, and instead of being up in a bun, her hair was styled so it cascaded down her back while staying out of her face. "I like your hair like that. You should wear it down more often."

"Regulation became, has become a habit, but I can wear it down more, at least off-duty." Motion in a window caught Winter's eye, giving her an idea. "Kiss me."

"Okay, why?"

"We're being watched. You kissing me sends a different message than me kissing you."

Ruby just laughed and pulled Winter down to her, entangling her fingers in Winter's hair and kissing her fiercely. "Think they got the message?"

"I think I'm going to have to start keeping a spare uniform at your place." They smiled at each other and Ruby tilted her head toward the front door. "Let's get going. It's probably Raven watching, and if we stay out here too long, she'll think we're stalling."

"And we have nothing to hide and nothing to fear," Winter said, nodding. "Remember, we are adults, and don't need their permission for this. Introducing me to them is a courtesy, nothing more."

"That sounds pretty cold. Where did you pick that up?" Ruby asked as they headed up the steps.

"I saw a therapist for a while. He helped me stop looking for approval from my father since it was obviously never going to come."

Ruby nodded. At this point, she figured there were about fifty-fifty odds that if she ever met Jacques Schnee, she'd just haul off and deck him. She started to ring the doorbell, then stopped and opened the front door. "Mom? Mama? Dad? We're here, let the Valish Inquisition begin."

"You don't even knock anymore?" A woman with long black hair and red eyes stood in a doorway, arms folded, glaring at them. "I thought we raised you better than that."

"One, dad said this is still my home and I'm welcome any time, two, we've got two cars outside to make a getaway, and three," Ruby met Raven's gaze as she counted on her fingers, "to paraphrase what someone told me not that long ago, once you're an adult, introducing your other half to your parents is courtesy. I don't need your permission anymore."

"And we all know how that works out, don't we?" Raven snapped. "Didn't the last girl you brought home almost get you sent to jail? What's this one going to do, get you killed?"

"I'd rather take a bullet myself than let Ruby come to harm, but I respect her too much to assume she needs protection, Raven. Or at least that's who I assume you are; the scowl Rather gives it away." Before Raven could explode, Winter fixed her best 'dining with your enemies' smile into place and held out her hand. "How do you do, ma'am, my name is Winter."

"Other than disrespectful daughters and the women they bring home, I'm doing fine." Raven shook Winter's hand, then looked down at the box Winter cradled in her left arm. "So this one's throwing her money around to impress us too?"

Ruby bristled, but Winter just shook her head. "Not at all. Or rather, I don't have much money to throw around. A lieutenant's salary only goes so far. But Ruby did say you like Mistrali whiskey, so thought a bottle of Calavera's might go over well."

That made Raven raise an eyebrow. "I see. Well, come this way, Tai's not quite done cooking so dinner will be a few minutes."

Out of habit, Winter looked over the décor as Raven led them into the house. Wooden walls and floors, decorated with rugs and wall hangings, all in soft tones. A glimpse of a living room showed a large television that seemed like an intruder. It made the home feel warm and inviting, a sharp contrast to the mausoleum Winter had grown up in, "I can see where the inspiration for your house came from, Ruby. Very nice."

"Summer insists on handling the decorating. I'd rather be sitting on cushions on the floor," Raven said with a snort.

"And that's why I am the one that handles the decorating, Raven dear. We're not all barbarians from Mistral." A woman that looked enough like Ruby to be her older sister smiled at the three of them as she set the last plate in place. "I'm Summer, Ruby's mom, and you are….? Ruby forgot to mention your name."

"Winter and I don't think she forgot so much as deliberately didn't mention. It's a pleasure to meet you." Again, Winter held out her hand, but she was surprised when Summer pulled her in for a hug.

"Sorry, I forgot, mom's a hugger," Ruby said, embarrassed at the mistake.

"Oh, you're not big on hugs, are you?" Summer stepped back, giving Winter an appraising look. "Have we met before? You seem familiar."

"I've gotten used to more physical contact lately. And no, I don't think we've met, but you do know my sister, Weiss."

Raven and Summer both looked at each other, then back at Ruby and Winter. "So you're dating your sister-in-law, Ruby?" asked Summer.

"Heh, kinda. But when we met, we didn't know who the other was. Or that our sisters were planning on getting married," Ruby said with a shrug. "So we're just minding our own business and worrying about us."

"Well, at least you've both got a reliable source if you need to ask something awkward about the other. Hi, I'm Taiyang, Ruby's father." A blonde man wandered out of what was presumably the kitchen, wiping his hands with a towel before holding one out. "I heard the part about you not being big on hugs, how about a handshake?"

Winter couldn't help but notice the calluses on his hands. "You still work with your hands a lot. Ruby said you owned a construction company; I would have thought you'd be stuck in an office."

Taiyang just laughed. "At work, yeah, I'm in an office. But I do a lot of work around the house, plus my other hobby is martial arts."

"It might be interesting to spar with you sometime. I've served with people from all four kingdoms; they've all had something to teach me."

"Uh, dad?" Ruby coughed. "Dinner? And unless my nose is wrong, it's your grilled fish tonight. Don't want that to burn."

Taiyang's eyes went wide, and he darted back into the kitchen to save dinner. "Nice save, Ruby," Summer said with a twinkle in her eye. "And Weiss did say her sister was in the military, didn't she? Are you stationed here in Vale, then Winter? Or just on leave?"

"My new assignment is here in Vale, as the aide to the new base commander, General Ironwood. Ruby and I met while I was on leave between assignments," Winter said, taking a set next to Ruby.

Raven's scowl deepened. "Military, huh? So, what happens when they decide you need to be somewhere else? You just going to leave Ruby behind, heartbroken, just like-"

" _Raven."_ Summer's voice spat out her partner's name like a crack of thunder. "Ruby has asked that we never talk about that woman again, or what she did to her. And what Ruby tells Winter about that is between the two of them. After all, this is just a courtesy call, isn't it?" Summer poured herself a glass of wine and one for Raven, but showed surprise when both Winter and Ruby declined. "You don't drink, Winter?"

"Not often, and never," Winter's pale blue eyes fixed on Raven, her voice flat and cold, "in the presence of someone I'm not sure is a friend or an enemy."

"That's rather harsh, isn't it?" Taiyang asked, coming back out of the kitchen with a plate bearing grilled fish in each hand, setting them down in front of Raven and Summer. "Back in a second, but please, do continue being catty with each other, Raven, Winter. It makes for such lovely dinner conversation. Especially when Winter hasn't done anything to earn it except not be pre-approved before dating Ruby," he called out behind him as he disappeared into the kitchen again.

Raven's hands clenched into fists and she started to rise, glaring at the opening into the kitchen, but Summer laughed and jerked her back into her seat none too gently. "Tai has a point, Raven. Even before she set foot in this house, you were hell-bent on running off whatever woman Ruby came through that door with. Although you could have been a touch more tactful, Winter. Now," Summer took a careful sip of her wine, "Raven does have a point. Being in the military means you can be reassigned at any point. What happens to Ruby then?"

Winter raised an eyebrow. She'd thought Raven was the one to beware; now she could see it was Summer. "I don't know," Ruby said quietly. "That depends on me and Winter, but I don't think she'll be reassigned anytime soon since she just got here. We, uh, we haven't made any long-term plans yet. I mean, we've only known each other for three weeks. S-So there's time to sort that out."

"And I apologize for my words," Winter said, taking Ruby's left hand in her right. "The way Raven has been treating me reminded me very much of my father."

 _That_ made Raven flinch. In all the years they'd known her, Weiss hadn't talked much about her home life, but what she'd said about her father was not very pleasant. "Fine. So, no firm plans, but you're probably not going anywhere for a while, either. And if you do break Ruby's heart, we might be able to get Weiss to convince you to come back and apologize at least. Assuming she's still not keeping secrets from us."

"For the record," Winter said, looking Summer in the eye, "I hate my father about as much as Weiss does, and tolerate his presence even less. He's tried to sabotage my military career multiple times. The first time was when he tried to drag me home after I ran away to military school."

"Wait, you _ran away to military school?"_ Raven laughed. _"_ Okay, this doesn't sound like a wine story. You gave me a bottle, we're opening it and you're telling the whole thing from beginning to end."

Winter proceeded to tell the story, going into more detail than she had with Ruby that morning. In the end, Summer shook her head. "Okay, nice story, but I'm calling bullshit. There's no way a spoiled rich girl would ever, ever, run off of her own free will to a military school."

In response, Winter reached into her jacket and pulled out a blood-stained silk handkerchief from the inside pocket. "I carry it with me every time I think I'll need the reminder that I'm my own person, and make my own fate."

"'I am the master of my fate/I am the captain of my soul," of my soul," Ruby quoted, making Winter raise an eyebrow at her. "What, you think you're the only one that reads poetry? I wore out three shirts with that poem on them in high school."

As they walked out to their cars, Winter stopped. "Ruby? I, I don't want to ask, but..."

"You want to know about her, don't you?" Ruby looked up at the night sky, her eyes fixing on Remnant's shattered moon. "I suppose I need to tell you sooner or later. But, not here, not in my parents' driveway, okay? My place, on the couch. No booze. I can't talk about this, drinking."

"I..." Winter stopped, not sure how to go on. "I'll need to stop and get a spare uniform; I have to work in the morning."

"That's assuming you want to stick around after you find out how stupid I was," Ruby whispered, so quietly Winter could pretend she didn't hear it.

* * *

When Winter reached Ruby's house, Ruby had already changed out of her dinner outfit and was curled up on the couch, an enormous stuffed dog clutched to her chest. "This, this is gonna be hard. I've never had to actually explain it to anyone before. Everyone I know was there for the disaster."

"Take your time," Winter said, wrapping an arm around Ruby's shoulders. "Or we can do this when you're ready. It doesn't have to be now."

"No." Ruby's voice was a growl. "I am **done** letting her, her shadow run my life.

"Okay, I'll start at the beginning. Right before I graduated high school, I decided to tell my crush that I was in love with her. But she turned me down flat. Said she was dating someone. So I was feeling pretty low right after high school, and that's why Blake blames herself for this whole mess."

Winter tilted her head. "Let me make sure I have this right: You had a crush on Blake and she turned you down? But you and she are friends, correct?"

"Yeah, but… it was a couple of years after all this before she could face me. And hey, the guy she was dating? That was Sun, and he turned out to be one of my best buds, once Blake forgave herself enough to introduce us." Ruby cleared her throat. "Anyway, that's when I met her."

"The devil woman."

"Cinder Fall." Ruby's voice was full of venom. "She was older, about the age you are now, sexy as hell, incredible in bed, and, well, she liked buying me things. She bought me a glider, brand new and better than the used one I was saving for, plus a trailer to haul it in."

Winter nodded. "She spotted your true weakness, and used it against you."

"Oh boy, did she ever." Ruby hugged the stuffed animal tighter, and Winter didn't need to see her face to know those beautiful silver eyes were full of tears. "After we'd been together for about six months, she started asking me favors. Nothing that seemed like a big deal, just dropping a package with a friend of hers when I went out of town for a competition."

"She was smuggling."

"Yeah, and I was dumb enough to go along with it. That went on for, oh, about four months.

"Then one day Cinder calls me into her office and tells me she needs me to make a run to Mountain Glenn. I laughed, told her I didn't have a reason to head for Mountain Glenn, there's no good gliding up that way. And that was when she sprang her trap.

"All those packages she had me deliver? She tells me they were full of uncut, high-end narcotics. I'd been her unwitting mule for months. And I had a choice. Either I could do what she wanted, let her fill my glider trailer full of drugs and drive it to Mountain Glen, or she'd turn me in to the cops. Anonymously, of course, and then it would be my word against hers, and she was an established businesswoman and I was a dumb kid right out of high school.

"I felt like I was trapped, like there was nothing I could do. So I let her load me up and went on my merry way. Except that right outside Vale, everything got to me and I just started crying so bad I had to pull over. I couldn't stop.

"Eventually, a patrolman stops to see what the problem is. I, um, broke. Told him the whole story, crying all the way. He puts me in handcuffs in the back of his cruiser and calls it in. And then I have to tell the narcotics guys the whole story again." Ruby wiped her face, not even bothering to hide the tears now.

"But she fucked up. Left her fingerprints on one of the packages. So did some of her goons. So, I, um I dodged jail, but I got a couple of years of probation, lost the glider and trailer, almost lost my truck too but I managed to prove I'd had that before I met Cinder. And that's the dumbest thing I ever did. So I guess you're leaving now."

Ruby sat there, sniffling, not even looking up as she heard Winter rise from the couch. But Winter didn't head for the front door, she headed for the bathroom. _Guess she needs to pee before she leaves._

"Ruby." She looked up to see Winter crouched in front of her, dressed for bed in an ice blue nightgown. "I'm still here, and I'm not leaving. We all make mistakes, they are the forge that makes us who we are. And we can either let them hold us back or we can defy them."

"Heh, I haven't told you the best part, how I got even with her." Ruby wiped her eyes again, a sadistic smile on her face. "A couple of years ago, her jackass lawyer gets ahold of me. He wants me to be a character witness at her parole hearing. I jumped at the chance. But when they called me to speak, well, I didn't tell them how nice Cinder was to me. I told them how she seduced and manipulated me into being her drug mule, how she threatened to ruin my life."

"I bet she was none too pleased."

"Let's just say the smug look on her face when I took the stand lasted less than ten seconds."

"Good. You have chosen to defy how she tried to ruin your life. Now come to bed. Oh, one more thing." Winter pulled her phone out of a pocket and tapped out a message. _War council alert: Dinner with Ruby's parents went well and Raven seems to like me. Ruby told me what happened with Cinder Fall. If I ever meet the woman, I am feeding her her still-beating heart. I do not want to hear her name ever again_

 _You're joking, right?_ came from Sun.

Weiss: _I would not put it past my sister to try_

Now Winter reached out, lifting ruby's chin with one finger. "I'm going to bed. Are you coming with me?"


	6. Chapter 6

"I need to speak with you, Winter."

"One moment." Winter's eyes kept scanning down the report she was reading for a moment before she realized that she'd been addressed by her first name. She muffled a curse as she looked up to see who her visitor was. "Jacques, what are you doing here?" _And how did you get in this building, and how do I get you to leave as quickly and quietly as possible?_

Her father strode into her office imperiously, reaching for a chair. "I am your father and you will treat me with the respect I deserve."

Before he could sit, Winter stood, fists clenched in rage at her side. "I believe I just did. And don't bother sitting down, _Jacques_ , you won't be staying."

"I see." Her father's voice was cold and sharp. "If you want it that way, we'll do it that way. I was hoping to make this a more pleasant visit."

That made Winter raise an eyebrow. "Considering our last meeting, I don't feel that's an option. Now, what do you want, so I can tell you to go fuck yourself and throw you out, and then get back to work."

"Vulgarity? I thought I raised you better than that."

"You mean you thought the staff you hired raised me better than that," Winter retorted.

The two of them glared at each other for a long moment. Someone peeked around the door, then darted back when they saw the staredown in progress. Finally, Jacques broke the stalemate. "Fine. I will tell you what I want and leave. Without, I will add, your goons having to throw me out this time."

"This is a restricted area, just like my last workplace. You are a civilian with no security clearance, and shouldn't be here. At the very least a visitor is required to be under escort at all times. So I wonder who you bribed or bullied to get in here." Winter stopped for breath, wondering if the person who'd peeked in was the 'escort' her father had connived.

He made a dismissive gesture as if that was of no importance. Which, to him, it was, being a rule that applied to lesser people, just like every other rule. "Your brother has stopped taking my calls. When I sent Klein to speak with him, he simply handed over all his credit cards. And he's dropped out of the business program, changed his major."

"What to?" Winter asked, her curiosity piqued.

"It doesn't matter."

"It does to me, but I can see where you wouldn't care." Winter allowed herself a smile. "You also apparently don't care about him as your child, or even as a person, either. Or you would have gone yourself to speak with him instead of sending Klein. Congratulations, _Father_ ," Winter made the word drip with venom, "you've managed to alienate all three of your children. Even your favored son that you doted on and did your best to mold in your image has finally had enough of your shit. Well done. I assume you're here so I can congratulate you on your triumph? Well, now that that's done feel free to leave." She made a shooing motion. Oh, she couldn't wait to share this with Weiss. Ruby would enjoy it too, she supposed.

"Hardly. I want to you talk to him, to convince him to see reason." Jacques reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper, holding it out to her. When she made no move to take it, he tossed it on the desk. "That's his phone number and address. If you can get through to him, I'll see that you're rewarded."

"What I want, you can't buy. Well, I suppose you could pay to have your tongue removed, but then you'd just find some other way to pester me."

A looming shape in the open doorway behind her father drew Winter's attention. Winchester stood there, his arms crossed. "You good here, Lieutenant Schnee, or do I need to throw him out?"

Jacques snorted. "And now the thugs arrive, threatening me with violence. I will leave when my business is done."

"Nope, I think you leave now." Winchester's arms were at his sides now as he stepped menacingly towards Jacques, his hands flexing in anticipation. "See, I hear you lied to the girl at the security desk to get in here. And it's really obvious Lieutenant Schnee here doesn't want you here. Hell, if you were on fire, I don't think she'd p-spit on you to put you out. So I'm going do you the biggest favor I can and give you the option of leaving under your own power. Immediately. Because otherwise, you're leaving on a gurney. See, there are at least three people within ten feet of you that are martial arts experts, don't want you here, and have no reason not to hurt you. Now scram. Before we start arguing about who gets to lay you out."

After the rabbit-eared sergeant from the security desk escorted her father away, Winter cleared her throat. "Thank you, Winchester. Encounters with my father tend to get unpleasant rapidly, and this time he was trying to convince me to do his bidding. That never goes well."

Winchester shook his head. "Don't worry about it. I was headed here to apologize anyway, for how I acted at the barbecue. It wasn't cool. Putting down your dad, that was a bonus. I hate bullies."

Winter gave him a curious look. "I find that surprising. If I may be honest, Lieutenant Winchester, you seemed to be the type to be the bully, instead of saving people from them."

Winchester just laughed. "Yeah, I know I'm kinda big. But I was really scrawny, up until I was about twelve. Then I hit a growth spurt and it just kept going. Drove my mom nuts, keeping me in clothes. But she managed, and after a while, what I grew out of my older brother was wearing, which annoyed him. He still kicks my ass when he wants to." He cleared his throat before going on. "Anyway, the other thing is, I brought a peace offering. On my way in this morning, I noticed that one of the apartment complexes near the base had a sign out front advertising move-in specials, with military discounts. I stopped and talked to the new manager, took a quick recon. The place looks nice and they've got on-site storage lockers for tenants."

"And conveniently near to you, I assume?" she asked, regarding the pamphlet he handed her dubiously.

"Nope. I'm half an hour away, and won't be moving any time soon. Can't afford to break my lease." Winchester lifted his hands in surrender. "Anyway, I gotta go. The general just got done chewing my ass over Saturday, so I've got an official apology to write, plus he dumped a priority project on me. Later."

* * *

Winter double-checked the address before knocking on the apartment door. She was surprised by where her brother lived. Instead of a luxury apartment, he'd chosen more modest housing near the university, in a building probably catering to students. Most of the people Winter had seen on her way in had been carrying backpacks, and she'd noticed the attention her uniform had drawn. But at least this building was clean and seemed to be in good repair.

Instead of Whitley, a girl with brown hair answered the door. "Rats, you're not the pizza guy."

"No, unfortunately. I'm looking for Whitley-" SLAM. Winter found herself staring at the apartment door. With a sigh, she knocked gently. "My name is Winter, and I'm Whitley's sister. Do you know where I can find him? If you have some dispute with him, I understand, and I won't bother you again." After a few moments of silence, Winter accepted defeat and turned to leave.

Behind her, the door opened. "Winter. It's surprising to see you. What brings you here?" Whitley stood in the half-open doorway, his head tilted slightly to one side as he gave Winter a puzzled look.

"Father decided to inflict himself on me today. He said you're not answering his calls, something about you changing majors." Winter frowned. "He tried to bribe me into making you do what he wants, but I refused."

"And yet here you are." Whitley crossed his arms, clearly confused but wanting to hear what brought Winter to him.

"I was curious to find out what finally pushed you into disobeying him, and thought I might see what help I could offer." Winter smiled at him, the same sort of encouraging smile she'd given Ruby before she'd met Ruby's parents.

Whitley nodded carefully. "You'd better come in, then. And I'd better order more pizza, this is going to be a long conversation."

Inside, Winter took the recliner, leaving Whitley and the girl to share the couch. By now, she had an idea of what was going on, but she wanted to hear her brother's version of things., though she did note that the girl had added a raspberry beret to her outfit. "This is Claire," he said, reaching over and taking the girl's hand. "We met in our freshman year, and I was immediately fascinated by her. So I asked her out."

"And I turned him down flat," Claire added. "But he was persistent, and kept asking."

"I wasn't stalking her or anything, we just kept ending up in the same classes." Whitley smiled. "I guess I was drawn to her honesty and her stubbornness. So very different from the girls Father kept pushing me toward. Eventually, she said yes and, well, you can guess the rest."

"Indeed." A knock at the door signaled the arrival of the pizza, giving Winter a chance to consider her next question. "So you're not talking to Father because you're certain he won't approve of Claire. How certain of this are you, Whitley? When Father finally learns the truth, he's going to cut you off completely. And why change majors?"

"You can thank me for him changing majors," Claire said with a laugh. "We were working on our classwork on one night, he was struggling with some of his business work, and I asked him, 'Why are you majoring in business? Cuz it seems like you hate it.'"

"I told her father expected me to take over the company when he retired. To which she replied, 'So do you always do what your dad wants?'" Whitley shrugged, taking a bite of pizza. "It was a moment of revelation. I'd always done what Father wanted because I didn't seem to have any choice. But now I realized that I did. So that was that. I filed the paperwork to change majors, it's only going to add another semester before I graduate, and started applying for grants and things to stay in college. And as for how certain I am of things," he gave another shrug, "have a look at the last major purchase I made before handing over my credit cards."

Clair held out her left hand, and Winter raised an eyebrow. The ring was simple, rather understated really, but bore a pair of wolves in a yin-yang pattern. "Very nice. I would like an invitation to the wedding, and I presume Weiss and her wife will like one too.

"Wife?" Whitley blinked. Twice. "I hadn't heard she'd married."

"Three weeks ago. I was a witness." Winter's phone made the double-buzz that signaled an important message. "A friend of mine is asking if I have plans for dinner. Do you mind if they join us?"

"S-Sure," Claire said nervously, adjusting her beret.

It wasn't long before Ruby arrived, her normally bouncy steps dragging. "Ugh, what a day!" she announced, surveying the living room before deciding the best seat available was Winter's lap. Winter just shifted over and made room for her as best she could before putting an arm around Ruby. "Rough day? I thought you were looking forward to today's charter since it was a helicopter flight."

"Yeah, but the customer was a jerk. Cranky old bastard, we spent all day going over this property where he's building his 'retirement home.' Didn't stop complaining about the noise all day. Helicopters are loud, deal with it! And he hit on me. A lot." Ruby paused in her venting to wave the arm not wrapped around Winter at the couch as Whitley reclaimed his seat next to Claire. "Hi, I'm Ruby, sorry, I had a rough day. You must be Whitley, and I didn't catch your name."

Whitley tilted his head to frown at Winter. "I didn't realize you were inviting that kind of friend over, sister."

"Ruby and I have known each other only a few weeks, but, " Winter shrugged, reaching up to pluck Ruby's sunglasses from her face, "we get along remarkably well. And no, Father doesn't know about us, any more than he knows about you and Claire, or Weiss and Yang."

"Oooh, I want to watch when he finds out. I bet we'll be picking his brains off the walls." Claire's laughter almost made her beret fall off, and she hurriedly reached up to grab it as she took a deep breath to calm herself."

Winter sighed. "If you like, Claire, go ahead and take the beret off. You seem to be having trouble keeping it on, and I already saw your ears the first time you answered the door."

"E-Ears?" Claire reached up and touched the side of her head. "What about my ears?"

"Not those ears." Winter tapped herself on the top of her head. "These ears."

Hesitantly, Claire reached up and took off the beret, revealing a pair of wolf ears peeking up through her hair. "H-How did you know?"

"As I said, I saw them when you first opened the door. And when I knew what to look for, I could see bumps under your beret." Winter smiled. "And no, it doesn't bother me. I am not my father and don't share his views on a lot of things. Which should be rather obvious," she finished, tilting her head toward Ruby.

"Y-You too?" Claire asked Ruby.

"Pfft. my first high school crush had cat ears," Ruby said, waving dismissively. "People are people, so treat everyone fair, that's what I know." Her and Winter's phones buzzed, but Winter fished hers out first and read the message from Sun. _War council alert: My idiot half-brother is hereby persona non grata and incidentally wanted by the Vale PD_

 _Cause?_ Winter sent back at Ruby's shrug.

 _Stealing my truck and wrecking it_. Attached was a picture of Sun's truck, upside-down and completely wrecked. _Idiot walked off and left it like that. Luckily I was teaching today, so I was a few thousand feet up or I'd be in jail. And it was stolen because I made him give me back his key. Guess he made a copy first_

 _Bonehead_ came from Yang. _Shall we gather to mourn the passing of your truck?_

 _I haven't met your brother_ Winter sent. _Can I get a photo?_ The picture Sun sent looked familiar. "I think he toasted us as we left the bar the night you and I met," Winter said to Ruby.

"Yeah, he was probably mooching drinks or money from Sun. Neptune's never been worth a shit, but he's Sun's brother and Sun's problem," Ruby said, shaking his head. "Dipshit even crashed with me for a while, but it wasn't long before I threw him out. 'Familiarity breeds contempt' doesn't take long with Neptune."

 _Motion to convene seconded_ came from Weiss.

 _Motion carries,_ Winter sent. She glanced up at Whitley and Claire, who were looking at them with confusion. _And what's the procedure for adding people to the war council? I have two members I'd like to nominate._

* * *

"Everyone," Winter said as the four of them approached the big table at Ren and Nora's, "this is Weiss and my brother, Whitley, and Whitley's fiancee, Claire. Whitley's broken off ties with our father, and I would like us to help them out."

"H-Hi," Claire said hesitantly. At Winter's insistence, her beret had been left at home.

"Pull up a chair," Yang said, gesturing to two empty chairs.

"T-Thanks," the wolf-girl said, sitting in the chair Whitley pulled out for her.

"Welcome to the family!" Nora said, popping up out of nowhere to hug Claire.

All Winter could do was smile. It wasn't the family she was born with, but it was the family she'd made.


	7. Chapter 7

Sun tossed his backpack in the back seat of Ruby's truck before climbing into the passenger seat. "Thanks, Rubes, I really appreciate the ride."

"No problem, you caught me at just the right time," Ruby answered as she pulled out into traffic. "They find Neptune yet?"

Sun shook his head. The insurance company had finally decided to pay out on a new truck to replace the one his brother trashed. Unfortunately, they'd also screwed up and canceled his rental car before he could take delivery on a new truck. "Nah. Last time I talked to the police, they were starting to think he skipped town. No Winter today? I know you two have lunch a lot, and I don't want to cut in on your action."

"No." The single, flat syllable caught Sun's attention, hard. "Okay, Ruby, what's wrong?"

"Nothing."

"Uh-uh, something's eating you, and I'm thinking it's related to your lady love. Come on, I'm your best bud. We tell each other stuff, right? You tell me what's wrong between you and Winter, and I'll tell you something Blake doesn't even know. Whaddya say?" Sun gave Ruby his most charming smile, the one he drug out when he really, really messed up with Blake. Like the one time, one time that Blake was never, ever gonna let him forget, he accidentally trashed one of Blake's favorite books. Thus Sun sleeping on Ruby's couch for a month. "Open up to Doctor Love Monkey."

"'Doctor Love Monkey?'" Ruby snorted. "I happen to know you have had one, and only one girlfriend your whole life."

"Which is what makes me an expert." Sun jabbed a thumb at his chest. "I picked the right girl the first time."

"Moe like lucky. And I picked the same girl, remember?"

"Ouch, well, I got there first. And just to sweeten the deal, I'll buy lunch. Sky's the limit. Well, um, not so much, I'm kinda tight till payday," Sun admitted. Ruby just laughed and pulled into a better-than-average burger place.

"Now start talking," Sun demanded as Ruby was reaching for her burger. "What'd you do?"

"Nothing." Ruby let out a long sigh at the disbelieving look on Sun's face. "Okay, since the moving company still hasn't found her stuff, Winter's been spending most of her of time at my place, since it beats a mostly-vacant apartment. Plus it gives Yang and Weiss as much private time as possible."

Sun winced as he grabbed a french fry. "You're kidding me. They still haven't found her stuff? She signed on that pace, what, a month ago?"

"Yeah. She's pretty pissed, well, pissed by Winter's standards. She's even talked to a lawyer." Ruby started to pick up her burger, then put it down. Suddenly her appetite was gone. "So anyway, a week ago, we decide to order pizza instead of cook."

"And now we get to the heart of the matter," Sun said, jabbing at Ruby with a fry. "Keep talking. I'm guessing you had an argument over pizza toppings?"

"She called them disgusting, Sun!" Ruby yelled, making other people in the restaurant look up. Ruby hunched over and leaned toward Sun and whispered, "Winter hates mushrooms."

Sun nodded sagely. Mushrooms were one of Ruby's favorite foods, and she really loved them on pizza. "And so you had your first fight."

"It wasn't..." Ruby's voice trailed off as her mind wandered back. "Okay, yeah it was."

Before Sun could say anything, a deep voice came from behind Ruby. "Everything okay here?" A cop was standing there, looking back and forth between them.

"Nah, we're cool, officer. I, um, I got a little loud," Ruby said, embarrassed. Sun just nodded.

"Okay, well, keep it down. People are trying to eat. Like me. So I'll let you and your boyfriend get back to it."

"He's not my boyfriend!" Ruby laughed. "We're both attached to other people, honest!" Then she stopped as she realized she was hoping it was still true. Okay, she and Winter had a fight, and they hadn't talked in a week, but they were still 'together,' right?

"So, you had your first fight." Sun took a big bite of his burger. "You two have been together how long?"

"Two months." Ruby smiled as she remembered that first night in the bar. Who knew that doing Sun a favor could have led to something like this?

"And you've been together pretty constantly. So something had to give, sooner or later." Sun shook his head. "Listen, you've been so down on love that you haven't really paid attention to other people's relationships, so I'm gonna let you in on a big secret: Couples fight. It's not all sunshine and roses."

"I know, Sun. You lived on my couch for a while, remember?"

"Like I'm gonna forget that. But here's the thing." Sun's finger stabbed down on the laminate tabletop. "Are you really gonna let her go over mushrooms? Or do you want to eat a little crow and apologize?"

"But..." Ruby's voice faltered. "But where do I start?"

Sun shrugged. "Try calling or texting her. Keep it simple for starters, 'I'm sorry and I miss you,' that kind of thing. Then talk to her and try working it out."

"R-right." Ruby tapped out a message to Winter, then put her phone down on the table, looking at it the same way someone might look at an unexploded bomb. "S-so your turn. What's the thing Blake doesn't know?"

Now Sun grimaced. Of course Ruby would remember that. "I, uh, I'm taking welding classes."

"What's the big deal about that?" Ruby picked up her burger and took a bite. Mm, sauteed onions, yum.

"I've been thinking about the future lately, about me and Blake. Tending bar, taking people up on hang-glider flights, that's not getting married and having a family money. For that, you've got to have a real job. So I thought I'd take up welding. The world needs welders, Rubes."

Ruby froze in mid-chew. "Yoh gonna ask Bwake to-" She stopped, chewed and swallowed, then started again. "You're gonna ask Blake to marry you? That's awesome!"

"Keep it cool, Rubes. Seriously, you can't tell a soul. Blake doesn't even know about the welding classes yet, much less, you know. And I've got a ways to go before I'm fully certified, and then I've got to find a job. But yeah, that's the plan. Wish me luck," Sun finished with a half-hearted laugh.

Before Ruby could answer, her phone buzzed an incoming message. A smile spread across her face as she read it, and her heart felt ten times lighter. _I'm sorry too. Never has my bed felt so empty and lonely before. Can we talk about it over dinner?_ A pause, then another message. _In other news, the shipping company has found my things and they should be here tomorrow_

 _Dinner sounds good,_ Ruby sent back. _Moving party tomorrow, then?_

_I don't have much to move in, but I think I'd like to invite everyone over anyway_

* * *

Winter smiled as she put her phone away. "Good news, I hope," Weiss said, sipping her coffee.

"Ruby and I… had a disagreement. We needed some time apart, but we're going to have dinner tonight and talk," Winter said simply, expecting the matter to be closed.

"Ah." Weiss smiled knowingly. "Your first fight."

"We didn't..." Winter stopped, remembering the raised voices that had turned into yelling, and something being thrown. "Okay, yes, we had a fight. I thought… I was afraid..." Her voice trailed off, and she slumped in her seat, something Weiss couldn't ever remember seeing her sister do.

Weiss just shook her head. Time for some sisterly advice. "You thought having a fight meant things were over between the two of you. Would you say that Yang and I love each other?'

"Without question." Anyone who wasn't an utter idiot should notice how Weiss and Yang felt about each other.

'And still, we fight. Sometimes it gets… loud and angry. Once we got into a fight while we were out to dinner. I, um, I ended up getting taken away in handcuffs," Weiss admitted, her face flushed with embarrassment.

"You were arrested?" Now Winter was intrigued. When Winter had visited before they got married, Yang had always acted very stiffly toward Weiss. But now that things were out in the open, she was very affectionate. It was hard imagining the two of them getting that upset with each other.

"In the end, no charges were filed. But we both spent a night in separate cells to give us time to cool off." Weiss shrugged. "Making up afterward was… interesting."

Winter nodded, then another thought crossed her mind. "Weiss… do you think Ruby and I are moving too fast? I mean, are we getting too invested in each other too quickly?"

"That's hard to say." Weiss reached out and took a cookie off the tray, looking at the traffic going past the outdoor cafe where she'd met Winter for lunch. "Since you and Ruby met, you've seen each other practically every day. But you're both used to being alone. Maybe a little more space might do you good. I will tell you something, though." Weiss gave her sister a warmer smile than Winter would have expected from her. "If you two do move in together, I think you'll be that couple that has separate bedrooms, but rarely uses them."

"What makes you say that?"

"Because I think both of you both need that sense of space, of being able to pull back if you need to. But you were also missing something, someone to give you an anchor." Weiss nodded as if she'd finally solved a dilemma that had been annoying her for a while. "Yes, an anchor. You both needed that, otherwise you weren't really living, just surviving."

A shiver ran down Winter's spine as she sputtered, "Are you saying I'm some sort of, of _appendage_ of Ruby's? I have a career, a life of my own."

"I didn't mean to imply otherwise, but… name me something you did outside of work before you met Ruby, something that really brought you joy," Weiss said, raising her left eyebrow in challenge, highlighting her scar.

"I…" Winter licked her lips thinking furiously. "I read, watched television or movies."

"And now? Now what are you likely to find yourself doing on an average evening?"

"Curled up on the couch with Ruby playing video games if not watching television, unless we're not out to dinner or on some mad adventure," Winter admitted. She'd never seen the point of playing video games, but somehow Ruby managed to make them more interesting. Maybe it was the animated way she played, moving her body as if it could make the character on the screen move the way she wanted. "Ruby really loves this independent theater that shows all sorts of odd films."

"So," Weiss dropped a sugar cube in her coffee, stirring it slowly, "you do some of the same things as before, but also a lot of new things. Do you enjoy them more with Ruby than you did alone?"

"Yes." A memory sprang into Winter's mind, the time they'd watched one of Winter's favorite classic films. At first, Ruby had been reluctant, but halfway through, the enjoyment had been plain on her face.

"So there you have it." Weiss lifted the coffee to her lips, sipping to cover the smile on her face. "Winter, every relationship comes together at a different pace. Sun and Blake met the first week of high school but didn't get together until the end of junior year. Yang and I hated each other when we first met, but it wasn't even a month before she asked me out on a date." She set down the coffee, reaching out to take her sister's hand and give it a reassuring squeeze. "Any relationship takes work, but at the same time, don't overthink it. Do what feels right for _you_ , both of you.

"Although I do admit it's rather interesting to be giving my older sister relationship advice."

* * *

Ruby groaned as she recognized the restaurant Winter had asked to meet at. No wonder she'd given Ruby the address and not the name. Well, they'd had their blowup over pizza, she guessed they should hash it out the same way. At least it was one of the best pizzerias in town. Ruby would have bet there wasn't another one in Vale that you needed a reservation for.

Inside, the place was all lacquered wood paneling and soft lighting, the sort of look that tries to make a restaurant has been there for a hundred years and usually fails. This place pulled it off in spades. The man at the podium shook his head at her. "I'm sorry, ma'am, but we're booked solid tonight."

"I, uh, I'm meeting someone. Name of Winter Schnee?" Ruby gave him a hopeful smile. She wasn't sure if she wanted him to admit Winter was here or not. If he tossed her out, well, it wasn't her fault, right? And that way Ruby could push this off just that much longer.

No joy. "Oh, yes, party the manager had us hold one of our walk-in tables for." He gave Ruby a disbelieving look before shaking his head. "Follow me."

No wonder the greeter had been giving Ruby the stink- eye. This place was wall to wall with the sort of snobby types who made more in a year than Ruby's house was worth. Yeah, she was wearing her favorite red blouse and tight black jeans, but she still felt decidedly underdressed. And she was pretty sure a couple of them had recognized her too.

Winter was waiting for Ruby in a cozy little booth that was tucked into a corner to give the occupants some privacy. She gestured at the dark beer sitting on the table in front of her. "Would you like a drink?"

Ruby regarded the beer dubiously. "Yeah, I'll try one of those."

"You don't have to, Ruby," Winter said, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, that does kinda look like you could tar roofs with it-" this brought a snort from Winter-"yeah, I did roofing work for a bit, laugh it up, but it, uh, it'll do me good to try something new, right?"

After the waiter had left, the two sat in uncomfortable silence for a bit, neither one of them looking straight at the other. "Ruby, I-"

"Winter-"

They gave each other an awkward look before bursting out in laughter. Ruby could have died happy right then and there. It felt _good_ to laugh with Winter again. Then Winter cleared her throat. "Ruby, I'm the one that owes you an apology. I should have handled that more diplomatically."

"Nah, I'm the one that owes you an apology. Or did the coffee cup sailing past your head fail to register?" Ruby said, embarrassed.

"At least it wasn't a glass ashtray."

"Say what?" Ruby almost choked on her first sip of beer in surprise, not at the taste of the beer but at Winter's words. The beer was as dark and smoky as its color had promised, but it was definitely enjoyable.

"You remember how Weiss used to smoke?" Winter took an appreciative sip of her own beer before continuing. "Apparently she and Yang were arguing one night about Weiss' smoking and Yang threw a heavy glass ashtray at Weiss. She missed, obviously, and the ashtray went through their living room window."

"Oh god," Ruby said, chortling. "Yang must have been mortified."

"It gets better. Your sister inadvertently got enough air on her throw that it went far enough to land on the windshield of her car."

Ruby just sat there stunned, imagining her sister's reaction. "But Weiss does admit that it finally got her to quit smoking," Winter added with a smile.

"I'll bet it did." Ruby cleared her throat. "Listen, Winter, I'm really sorry. I, well, mushrooms are kinda my favorite food, and when you called them disgusting-"

"-it instantly made you so angry you couldn't think straight." Winter grimaced. "I, I talked to Weiss today, and she said that sometimes little annoyances build up, and all it takes is a little spark to set us off." She folded her hands on the table, giving Ruby an unreadable look. "Looking back, how would you normally handle it if someone objected to mushrooms?"

"Um gone without them, or maybe put them on just half the pizza?" Ruby gave Winter a broad smile, trying to lighten the mood. Inwardly, Winter was fighting to keep her cool. It wasn't that she didn't want to make up with Ruby, but they needed to talk about this, not forget about it. Weiss had been very firm about that, to the point of telling her sister that if they didn't sort this out to Weiss' satisfaction, Winter would find her things in the dumpster, if not the Vale River.

Instead, she nodded slowly at Ruby. "Yes, that would have been more appropriate, wouldn't it? Ruby, just because I don't like one thing you like, doesn't mean I don't like _you._ " Winter stopped herself from using other words; this wasn't the time for that. "We are different people, and we are not going to always agree or like something that the other likes. Honestly, the reason I don't like mushrooms is just the texture of them, that's all."

"I guess that's okay." Ruby stifled a yawn. She hadn't really been sleeping well the past week, and right now what she wanted most was a bed, any bed, with Winter in it. "Listen, Winter, I'm sorry, really, sorry. And I guess I really fucked this up, didn't I? Dinner's on me, I guess."

"No. New relationship rule: Whoever picks the restaurant gets the check." Winter cocked one eyebrow challengingly at her.

Did Winter just say-? "S-so you're not breaking up with me?" Ruby breathed a heavy sigh of relief. Maybe she'd dodged the fallout from her own stupidity after all.

"Hardly."Now it was Winter's turn to relax. "The fight was… inevitable in certain regards, although it could have come at any time, or been caused by anything. Ruby, we, we haven't really gotten to know each other yet, have we?"

"Nah." Ruby took a gulp of her beer to hide the flush she could feel rising in her face. "It, uh, it all came together kinda fast, didn't it?" Winter nodded, keeping her expression neutral. She hadn't missed the blush. "So… maybe we take things a little easier?"

"And spend more time just… talking, getting to know each other. I have missed you, Ruby."

"Me too," Ruby said, remembering how just plain _good_ it felt waking up with Winter next to her. Before she could go on, a waiter arrived with a pizza in hand. "Uh, we didn't order."

"I did, just before you arrived."

"Oh, okay." Ruby was annoyed for a moment that Winter had ordered without her, but then her mind stopped dead in its tracks when she saw the topping-laden pizza in front of her. Including mushrooms. "Are you sure about this? There's mushrooms on it."

"Absolutely certain." The white-haired woman reached out and slid two slices onto her plate. "I will admit to cheating and asking my sister what all your favorite toppings were. Now eat; pizza is not something I enjoy often, but I do remember it's best enjoyed hot."

* * *

Ruby whistled and broke into an unashamed grin as she turned around in Winter's living room. "Niice. I mean, I've never been an apartment kind of girl, too much stuff, but this is nicer than I imagined. It, uh, it'll look better once all your stuff is in it."

"I hope so, although my 'stuff; is rather minimalist. I've never been much for decorating, so I was hoping you'd help me make it less… spartan?" Hesitantly, Winter reached out and took Ruby's hand. Dammit, why was she nervous now. "But you haven't seen the best part yet."

She led Ruby into the bedroom, and now Ruby couldn't suppress a giggle. The positively enormous bed had black sheets that looked sinfully smooth to the touch. She cleared her throat and looked at Winter, forcing her face into a serious expression. "Somebody was getting ideas, were they?"

Winter looked away, unwilling to look Ruby in the eye. "Like you, I had slept alone so much I, um, I didn't consider company when purchasing a bed. I decided it was high time to correct that. It, um, it was intended to be a surprise for when I moved in, but then the moving company lost my things and, um…" Now Winter took a deep breath and turned to face Ruby, not bothering to hide the embarrassment on her face. "I would like you to stay the night. Please," she added weakly, as Ruby crossed her arms.

Suddenly Ruby catapulted herself forward, wrapping her arms around Winter. "Duh. I mean, obviously."


End file.
